#u said “side with merlin” and also “evil”

[tiodolma]

@inthecrystalofadream and i think this is what morgana analysis from a lot of merlin fandom lacks. Here I employ YMMV "your mileage may vary"

I get that we probably didnt grow up in the same circumstances. Hence why I can offer analysis like this of a very fictional character in response to your meta as someone who grew up in an environment that tbh isnt very different from Adventures of Merlin's Camelot. This is all very watsonian(in-universe) of us after all, so i implore you not to ignore what i can see for myself in bbc morgana's characterization.

Hear me out.

BBC Merlin writers were not stupid. They knew where to draw inspiration from. BBC Morgana, unlike arthurian legends Morgan la fey, was actually given by the writers a justified cause for her "evilness" or "extremism." She came from a place which wanted justice for herself and others members of a minority group and was continuously left with no choice but to go on the offensive. Why do I know this?

From this interview Katie Mcgrath dropped a very very interesting tidbit about Morgana's characterization

BTW, I used to think like you guys you know? Why couldn't Morgana just make a new kingdom? Why didnt she just started healing people out of the blue? Why wouldn't she convince uther when they are so close?

UNTIL THIS I READ THIS FROM KATIE MCGRATH HERSELF

“One thing I was told to remember was that you cannot underestimate the impact of spending a year with someone like Morgause … who she sees as the only person to ever accept her,” Katie explained, when asked about Morgana’s quick and brutal turn against everyone in Camelot

THIS SLAPPED ME IN THE FACE. You know what this reminded me? It reminded me of the "Save Our Children" Campaign my government used to propagate many years ago at the height of President Duterte's power. For context... Activism is basically discouraged in my "Democratic country." (ironic i know and thats why this propaganda was dangerous)

In this campaign the mothers of activists (who are now rebels) lamented at how their children/ young adult kids left home for montsh on end to train in the mountains and how they came back totally changed.

All the meta about "there is no way morgana would change in just one year! she must be darktowered and enchanted!" suddenly lost steam for me. I had forgotten an important truth in my own real life experience: THAT People, especially ambitious young adults full of hope and idealism, can get radicalised and turn to extremists in just 3-6 months by being thoroughly isolated from their peers and fed grandiose promises of new world orders and knowledge of information and offensive/militaristic skills.

You do not need magic to convince people to turn away from their original selves. You just need a skill of words and a show of belonging, community, knowledge, power and opportunity. AND 1 YEAR IN ISOLATION OF THAT? OH BOY. You got a well trained revolutionist and agent already.

I thoroughly believe that this is what happened with Morgana. Because Katie talked about her like that in that interview. In another interview she even said "Morgana was duped by Morgause"^^^

This is the analysis i have chosen to understand morgana. This is what I offer in this fandom. Because I come from a place most likely unlike yours but quite similar to BBC Merlin's in spirit.

There is another way to look at Morgana's character and that is to look at her in the eyes of a powerful political activist and A REBEL who was pushed to the extreme and yet not allowed to experience proper negotiation/diplomacy even when she asked for it.

Just think about it. Don't shut these kind of meta out for being disturbingly close to life for other fans. Our Mileage May Vary.

[jaladdin]

sorry i’m thinking about morgan le fay and her connection to morgie and what it implies in the descendants universe again. sorry. like we can assume he inherited all of morgan’s powers because that’s what happens in descendants. but there’s so much emphasis on his shapeshifting—his ability to mimic animal cries, the serpentine line in “life is sweeter,” and the way he gets the shitty cgi snake eyes. and i am Looking

it makes me 🤔 about morgan le fay, shapeshifter by jill m. hebert, which dives deep into both the literal and metaphorical aspects of morgan’s shapeshifting over time. herbert writes that "morgan’s power in part comes from the fact that she always retains agency, choosing among multiple forms at will. as a marker of reform, she can also influence others to change their shapes, and so she often appears at points where a change or expansion of the limits of identity is required."

and so what if i said morgie’s shapeshifting isn’t just a silly guy power; it’s tied to the movie’s entire theme of identity and transformation and agency. in descendants 4, there’s a ton of focus on characters pushing the boundaries of who they are—like cinderella transforming into the “mystery princess” at castlecoming or bridget becoming this literal and metaphorical monster. morgie’s shapeshifting could be his version of that—a way to expand his identity from just “villain kid” to something more. maybe something softer, or maybe just something less Turbo Connected to uliana, but. Something

but ok then there’s the other side where morgie’s so desperate to gain uliana’s validation, and the world of auradon: royals and villains really drives that home: "morgie desperately wanted uliana to like and respect him. he was quick to compliment her and would do whatever she said." and that makes me wonder is morgie’s shapeshifting really about his own agency, or is it more about molding himself into whatever uliana wants? he literally performs animal cries for her to warn her when merlin is coming at her command. so in that way i sniff out if maybe his shapeshifting is actually a metaphor for losing himself—becoming whatever uliana wants him to be and not who he really is. if he even really knows. especially agiven it's pretty clear that to morgie, uliana is a surrogate for morgana, and it's her approval he really wants.

hebert talks about how morgan’s shapeshifting lets her defy societal and gender based expectations, saying, "morgan shapeshifts both literally and metaphorically as she confounds traditional social and gender expectations; her power in arthurian literature is generated by that very agency." for morgan, it’s all about control and breaking free from the roles others try to box her in. but for morgie maybe it’s the opposite.

and then there’s the Fucking Scene They Cut at the end of descendants 4 where morgie gets his hands on the sorcerer’s cookbook. bc to me that implies that he would be able to open it, otherwise why would they make a big deal out of him having it at all??? and if he’s able to open it, it means he’s starting to tap into his potential both in terms of magic and figuring out who he really is (in that he has no evil motivation of his own when uliana is not around to please). 

morgana le fay, shapeshifter also says, "morgan’s ability to change shape signifies her potential to evade and to resist the shape(s) that others—authors, critics, and characters—attempt to impose upon her." maybe morgie’s shapeshifting will end up being more than just a way to survive or gain approval—maybe it’ll be his way of resisting the expectations placed on him, just like his mother did, and discovering a softer, more authentic identity in the process.

anywa morgie’s shapeshifting isn’t just some random power they put in for fun and sillies. or maybe it is and i’m insane. it probably is this is disney's descendants. i don’t care. To Me it’s about identity and agency. while he might have inherited his mother’s abilities, how he uses—or is used by—his shapeshifting could define who he becomes. will he be like morgan, using it to carve out his own identity, or will he get lost in the roles others (coughs at uliana) want him to play? the way ror was so transformation focused makes me think that morgie’s story is Also one that’s going to fit that mold of shapeshifting—both in terms of who he is on the outside and who he’s trying to be on the inside.

also literally bc if i dont get to see morgie as a snake ill lose it. one of these fucking things

arent they so silly.

[starkidpotty]

In Cahoots [HJP]

Request: hey omg your writing is so good! can I request Harry and reader being friends and having detention with umbridge together and then walking back together to the common room late at night and taking care of each other and then they admit their feelings for each other? Have a wonderful day! 💕💕 - anon

You never mean to say or do most things, but this time it works out for the better.

Pairing: Harry Potter x Reader

Word Count: ~2.2k

Warnings: mentions of blood, scars, and wounds

A/N: I deviated from them being friends ;( i love awkward teen interactions too much. i hope u enjoy it regardless! <3 

Punishments for misbehavior at Hogwarts were never bloody. Scary, perhaps, but never bloody. Umbridge made it clear she did not care much for this unwritten rule, and had a taste for a more medieval way of disciplining the students. Harry was the first person to incur damage from Dolores’ sadistic black quill, until you found yourself in detention with him. Your reason for detention was stupid (Umbridge’s rules were stupid) as you were found by the Inquistorial squad with a dungbomb you had no intention of using in your pocket. Meanwhile, Harry was serving day three out of his 2 week detention with Umbridge. You mournfully hated that this was the most interaction you and him have had outside of the DA meetings.

Both of you were tasked to repeatedly write I must not break rules until it was scabbed and bleeding onto your hands. You were sat next to Harry, on your 28th or 29th repetition of the line–you lost count, as the pain started to amplify the more you wrote. Umbridge was looking quite pleased with herself, as she paced back and forth while watching the both of you with a nefarious grin plastered onto her ugly face. Tears had started to pool in your eyes making them appear like watercolor-painted puddles. You were trying your hardest to suck them back into your tear ducts to no avail. Tear by slow tear began to crawl its way down your face and onto the empty parchment as you wrote with your quill. The effect of the quill for some odd reason was extreme on your hand. You were bleeding more profusely than your contemporaries, you noticed.

Umbridge finally relinquished the both of you from the painful task and you immediately took hold of your book bag, haphazardly dropping the black quill onto the floor, and flounced to the exit, beating Harry to it.

Your lips were pressed together in a fine line, trying to stifle in a cry until you rounded a corner and sat on the nearest bench. In a desperate attempt to get the bleeding to stop, you carelessly unknotted your Gryffindor tie and tied it over the wounds. You sat for a few seconds, pressing firmly on the wound to get it to stop bleeding. Your tears were now free flowing at this point.

Harry spots you from his peripherals, as he exits detention. Harry walks over to you to comfort you, as he knows how terrible the wounds are the first time around. You, on the other hand, were so fixated on the wound, that as you stood up to go to the girl’s lavatory, the top of your head made contact with Harry’s jaw. 

Harry takes a few steps back, surprised by the sudden contact between your scalp and his chin. And, you are now nursing two boo-boos instead of the one. Harry composes himself quickly and takes steps toward, while still clutching his jaw. You are holding your head and while your hand bleeds freely over the floor, even with the tie wrapped around it.

“You’re, uh, bleeding,” He stammers as his eyes follow the drops of blood. He swoops to take your hand and unravel the red-stained, makeshift Gryffindor tie bandage, carelessly placing it in his front pocket. He tries his best to be gentle but failing as you wince, “Quite a lot.”

“I am fairly well-aware, Harry.” You didn’t mean for this to come off as snarky, but as the pain and bleeding on your hand intensify, you really couldn’t control your tone, even if it was Harry that was talking to you.

“Of course, sorry.” He replies to you sheepishly, “I’ll help you clean it up, if it’s alright.” Harry took this opportunity to not only help you, but to be able to stand in such close proximity to you–something he’s been pathetically inching towards the whole school year. 

He doesn’t wait for your response and leads you to the girl’s lavatory, heading straight to the sink. He turns the faucet on and gently takes your hand under the running water. He wipes away the blood with both his hands, and you stare at his hand. Underneath the newly minted wounds were faded and healing wounds spelling out “I must not tell lies”. 

The pain made its presence on your hand very clear, but your thoughts were swirling around erratically. Harry Potter was tending to your wounds, holding your hand, standing oh-so painstakingly close to you in the girl’s lavatory. Your little schoolgirl crush on him started after the Yule Ball and stayed ever since. So, regardless of how much pain you were in, you were enjoying his presence. 

He’s fixated on your hands as quite literally, the bleeding wouldn’t stop, no matter how hard he pressed. Also because he was too shy to look at you, square in the face. 

“With all the bleeding, I’d guess you were a hemophiliac,” Harry declares seriously, trying to make the atmosphere more comfortable.

You didn’t know whether to take this as a joke or an insult as you, being the pureblood you were, did not know what a hemophiliac was. You give him a confused look, head tilted slightly, brows furrowed at the center. Harry, on the other hand, was beating himself up for trying to cut the silence in such a dumb way. 

“Sorry? Is that a muggle joke?” You question. 

“Oh, er, sorry,” He awkwardly stammers out, “It’s a muggle condition where your wounds don’t quite necessarily know when to stop bleeding.” 

All you muster is a softly-spoken, oh. You were still awkwardly standing with your hand in Harry’s. Harry turns off the faucet and  grabs your tie out from his pocket. He dabs it gently and presses it firmly onto your wounded hand. With his free hand, he fishes his wand from his pocket. 

Uncovering your tie from the wound he says, “Episkey,” while pointing his wand at your hand. The wounds scabbed over, stopping the bleeding. As your tie is drenched in blood (you were astounded at how much blood your hand let out, perhaps you were what muggles called a “hemophiliac”), Harry unties his own tie and wraps it around your scabbed hand for good measure. You take this opportunity to wipe your face dry with your untouched hand. He hands you your bloodied tie and you shove it into your bookbag. 

He stares at you and smiles, “I hope that would help, one way or another.” He’s still holding your wounded hand and stares at you. You look to meet his eyes and for a few seconds your eyes lock. You get red in the face and look down quickly. Harry lets out an awkward chuckle and gently drops your hand out of his. 

“Thank you, Harry, but what about your wounds?” You ask him as now you take his wounded hand. You examine the scar on his left-hand. You rub your thumb gently near the wounds, paying extra attention to not gloss over the newly formed scabs. He tamely takes his hand away from you and hangs it at his side.

“I’ll manage.” He replies to you. Not wanting to give you the chance to contest he continues, “Uh, would you like to head back to the common room together?” 

“I don’t think we’ve much a choice,” you respond, smiling lightly.  

Walking out the girl’s lavatory–thanking Merlin that no one saw Harry scamper out the door–and make your way to the Gryffindor tower. The silence is extremely awkward. Harry sneaks glances at you, as you look out to the Hogwarts courtyard to ease out of whatever mental bind you’ve put on your tongue. 

“So, Ha–” you begin. At the same time, Harry opens his mouth to speak uttering the first syllable of your name. You both look down at the floor, grinning like idiots. 

“Sorry,” Harry says, “Please, you first.”

You let out a breathless half-giggle, “Umbridge’s quill is quite evil, isn’t it?”

“Indeed.” Harry wanted to scream into a cauldron. Months of imagining a full-on conversation with you in his head and all he could muster was a puny indeed? 

Another awkward pause takes a hold of the two of you. 

You begin again, “So… are you and Cho, er, together? In cahoots?” You mentally slap yourself on the forehead. What kind of teenager  says cahoots unironically?

“Me? Cho?” Harry questions you, looking bewildered. Harry was surprised at your question, as he thought his pitiful pining over you was already painfully obvious.

“Is-is it not a thing?” You stammer out, a bit surprised. 

“Not in the slightest.” Confirms Harry. 

“Well, I only ask,” You pause, trying to recollect your thoughts and choose your words carefully, “because you too seem very close.”

“Well, she’s a good friend, but no. We aren’t together. She’s still mourning Cedric.” 

“Oh, I can only imagine.”

A third awkward silence takes you both once more. You are unaware, but Harry is just as nervous as you are. You and Harry have finally made it to the moving staircases, you two make your way up. Just as you hit the middle of the staircase, it moves, leaving you and Harry stuck until it returns to its original position. Harry wanted to throw himself off of the magical staircase right about now.

Harry thinks this is as good a time as ever to sneakily confirm–hopefully deny–his suspicions and continues the conversation, “What about you, and, uh, Anthony Goldstein?” 

Your face reflexively cringes and Harry smiles at the scene, “Have I said something?” 

“Yes, you said Anthony Goldstein.” 

“Well, I thought you and he were in cahoots.” He jokes at you, trying to fake confidence.

You bury your face in your hands, “Merlin, he was a git. He was quite rude to me after he told me how he felt about me because I confessed I had a little crush on you.” You immediately regret the oversharing of information as Harry eyes widen. But deep down, he’s more relieved than not, as you had accidentally made the proverbial first move.

You try and play it off with a laugh, “Well, I mean, they say you are the Chosen One, and, uh I think you are quite nice-looking,” Nice-looking? you think to yourself. You continue to save yourself the embarrassment, “you’re great at spells too, and, uh, very brave, I’d say.”

Harry goes red in the face at your flurry of compliments, but he only repeats, “Nice-looking?”

“Quite.” 

Harry doesn’t know what force propels him to start acting all cheekily with you but he says, “I think you’re, er, quite nice-looking as well. Talented at spells, too.” 

“So I guess it’s agreed upon then?” you ask him. 

“Sorry?” 

“That we both think we are nice-looking...and good at spellwork.” You joshed. 

“If anything, I think you’re more than quite nice-looking–you’re very beautiful.” Harry says so quickly, it’s almost a miracle he didn’t trip over his tongue.

It’s as though your’s and Harry’s faces were having a contest on who could make who redder–you were sure you were winning.

“That’s you, I think.” You say to return the compliment, then subsequently groaning realizing how it came out.

“You think I’m beautiful too?” Harry bantered.. 

“Much more beautiful than me, I suppose.” 

The staircase finally shifts to the correct landing and the both of you ascend to the Gryffindor tower entrance, Harry says the password, gesturing for you to step in first. You turn to him to thank him but your lips meet his cheek instead. You inadvertently tell him you have a crush on him and then you inadvertently make a move on him, not even 2 minutes apart? What a mess. 

“Merlin, sorry, Harry! I didn’t realize you were so close.” You apologize. 

“No worries, [Y/N]” He says without looking at you as his stomach suddenly turned into a trapeze artist and started doing flips upon flips. 

Thank Merlin there was no one in the common room to watch you and Harry make bumbling fools of yourselves. You both pause at the entryway of the common room, until you begin to speak.

“I want to say thank you, by the way,” You say. You begin to unravel his tie from your hand, seeing as your hand was no longer hurting. “Here’s your, uh, tie, by the way. Thank you for tending to it, even if you didn’t have to.” 

“Anytime,” Harry replies. 

You turn to head to the stairs to make way to your dormitory but Harry calls out.

“I just want to repeat that me and Cho aren’t, er, dating or, as you call it, in cahoots. ” He says to you.

“You’ve said that,” You tell him while smiling. 

“Perhaps, you and I could be in cahoots–I mean it could be something you and I could work toward, if it’s alright with you, but if it’s not, it’s completely fine, I’d still think you’re very beautiful regardless.” Harry is rapping at this point, heart beating in his ears.

You’re surprised and extremely elated at Harry’s burst of confidence, “It is alright by me, Harry. I think I’d like that–I know I would, actually.”

“Brilliant. Absolutely excellent.” He beams. 

“Absolutely.” 

--

masterlist here

[raisinchallah]

sitting here thinking about bbc merlin at 2 am its like ok i am someone who is desperately fascinated by bad television but i feel like i literally want to study the people who made merlin like bugs under a microscope here because i have just never seen a show fail so completely at its basic premise its like idk truly incredible like the implication from the very first episode is like... at some point uther will die arthur will ascend to the throne and arthur will have learned to be a better person and respect merlin and other people merlin will reveal he has magic and that will be complicated and eventually magic will be restored to the land and like presumably the knights of the round table will feature and morgana might betray them and so on give or take a few other common parts of arthurian mythos like arthur could die at the end he could not gwen and lancelot could be a thing so on but like you know very clear little story here and like they spend the rest of the show just kicking and screaming trying to avoid that conclusion at like all costs and i just quite literally do not get it like again if they wanted an episodic show they could have done that they had plenty of weird fun little adventures that literally could have been the focus but no yet another big bad yet another attempt on uthers life my god their absolute fucking obsession with having a main character close to death is insane ur screaming at the tv just kill him (uther) already... again like the various famous knights could have been introduced undergoing a similar journey of like being young and unsure add some variety to various stories expand the cast and concepts like literally anything but its like plot baiting constantly like oh maybe some kind of big thing will change maybe arthur will become a better person maybe uther will die and its like hah psyche you wish morganas little realizing she has magic thing is the only solid overarching plot line but she instantly becomes the worst 2 dimensional villain the second shes evil its insane i just literally i literally i know this has all been said but akd;lkfj;ld truly i think the most baffling thing was just keeping arthur as the most insufferable awful person well into season 3 like zero character growth nobody grew morgana just became evil and merlin more of a doormat and gwens story mostly focused on being arthurs love interest while he still was being like such a selfish asshole so again ur screaming at ur tv u dont need him!! im so sorry ive said this all before but like again how hard would it be to like have uther killed mid season three arthur ascend to the throne and deal with the challenges that would come with that become maybe slightly a better person continue reassessing his feelings on magic after the reveal about uthers lies about his mother and so on remove the bans on magic merlin tells arthur somehow and like it could still end on arthurs death just like after that all happened like one of the most well known books of arthurian legends is literally called le morte d’arthur which also side note super funny to me they used up that episode title in season 1 where he didnt even die like ok..stop the lies the games

[yan-senna]

The Keeper of the Diamond 3 (Severus Snape x reader, Lucius Malfoy x reader & Negan x reader)

By yan-senna

Other links to the story: Wattpad / AO3

Want to be tagged when I post a fanfic?

Book 1 / Chapter 1 / Next book / All chapters

Chapter 22 (ending of book 3)

They then enter Malfoy Manor. As they enter the living room, they are greeted by a happy Narcissa. “Draco, Y/N. You are finally here. Did you all have a good time?” she asks as she smiles.

They both nod. “Yeah, we played something called Mario Car. Or was it Mario Kart? Anyway, that was quite fun, but it was Potter and Weasley’s fault that I did not win!” he says as he huffs. Snape rolls his eyes while Lucius chuckles.

“We also played another game. Something-Topia. That was really fun. We made the Dark Lord the evil guy. Saint Potter was of course the good guy who later turned bad, though. We made a team that you guys were a part of. And we made you the Hero, Professor Snape” Draco states as he looks at Snape who then smirks.

“Is that so?” the Potions Master simply asks. Both Draco and Y/N nod.

Lucius clears his throat. “Let us go and sit by the dinner table. Dinner will be served soon” he states.

Nodding, they all enter the dining room and sit at the dinner table. To the right side of the table is Lucius in the middle. To his right is Draco and to his left is Narcissa. To the left side of the table right across the others is Snape next to Y/N on her left side.

The house elves then emerge to serve the dinner which is some fancy three-course meal. Of course, only the best for the Malfoys and their guests. They all tuck into their meal while having a conversation.

Once in a while, Snape nudges his leg on hers. Y/N blushes at that while Snape just smirks.

When they are finished, Y/N is absolutely stuffed. She can’t possibly eat any more. However, when dessert is served, she suddenly regains an appetite and tucks in. The Malfoys and Snape chuckle at the girl.

When dessert is finished as well, they all then enter the living room to drink some tea while chatting. Lucius sighs in pleasure. “I did miss your tea, Cissy” he says as he sips on the tea that his wife made.

Narcissa smiles. “I am glad to hear that, Lucius. I missed making tea for more people than just myself” she says as she sighs.

Draco suddenly says something he probably shouldn’t have said. “I miss Snape’s coffee, though. When can we visit you again? This time we won’t have to hide from Y/N, thank Merlin” he says as he thinks about that time.

Y/N looks absolutely shocked and confused while the three adults glare at Draco. He then realises what he said and starts to sweat.

“U-um, I mean… I miss your coffee when we visited you right after we were pardoned” he says as he gives a nervous laugh. It’s too late, though.

Y/N looks at Snape. “They were there the whole time?” she quietly asks.

Snape sighs. “No, they first came a few days before you arrived” he admits.

Y/N has tears in her eyes. “Why didn’t you tell me? I wouldn’t have told anyone! Not even my friends!” she says as she starts to sob. They all look guilty at her.

Narcissa gives her a tight hug. “Shh, we are so sorry, sweetheart” she says as she comforts the sobbing girl.

Snape sighs once more. “I thought it was best not to tell you. Lucius did want me to let you know, by the way. I am the only one to blame here” he says as he slowly hates himself for not telling her.

Y/N then goes to hug Snape tightly, sobbing while burying her face in his chest. “I’m sorry, I’m not mad at you. I get why you didn’t tell me. But please, never keep something like that away from me” she says as she looks at him with teary doe eyes.

Snape gives a small smile as he wipes away her tears. “Of course. I promise, princess” he says as he whispers “princess” so only she hears it. She smiles at that.

Y/N then yawns a bit. Lucius chuckles. “It is pretty late. I will show you to your room” he says as he looks at Y/N and Snape. They both nod as they bid Draco and Narcissa good night.

They then follow Lucius around the Manor as he turns to look at them. “I figured you would want to share the room, yes?” he asks.

Snape nods. Y/N blushes but nods as well. Lucius smiles at that. “Good, your room is right next to Cissy and mine. Just in case you need anything. Draco’s is a bit further away. He is a teenager after all, so he would like some privacy away from his parents” he says as he laughs.

They then enter the guest room. It’s a pretty big room with a king size bed and a big dresser. There’s a big green carpet on the floor.

“Wow, this room is really pretty” Y/N says in awe.

“Indeed” Snape simply says.

Lucius then turns to look at Y/N. “If I recall correctly, then I promised that you could try out my hair care products. Would you like to take a shower now?” he asks her.

Y/N nods. “Yeah, I would love to” she says as she smiles.

Nodding, Lucius turns to Snape. “We will be back later, Severus” he tells him.

As Snape nods, Lucius and Y/N then leave the guest room and enter Narcissa and Lucius’ room. It’s even bigger than the guest room. Even the bed is bigger.

Lucius smirks. “In case you were wondering, yes, this bed is quite big. We do need it, though. And it is not about what you are thinking. No, it is just that Narcissa takes up all the space at night. I have no idea how she does it�� he says as he chuckles at Y/N’s flustered face.

She thought that he was going to say something else. Thank Goodness he didn’t, though.

Lucius then gestures to the bathroom. “The bathroom is in there. The green bottles are mine while the purple ones are Cissy’s. You can try out her shower gel, it smells quite nice. There is also a body lotion you can try” he states.

Nodding, Y/N takes her Snape T-shirt and some clean underwear out of her weekend bag as she heads into the bathroom. Their bathroom is bigger than Vera’s, Laura’s and her room combined. And that’s not even a joke.

She strips out of her clothes and enters the shower. She turns on the water and starts washing her hair with the green-bottled shampoo. It’s a really good shampoo, she won’t lie about that.

She then rinses it out and uses the green-bottled conditioner. Okay, she has to ask Lucius where she can get this.

She then uses the purple-bottled shower gel. He didn’t lie when he said that it smells good. She usually uses perfume free products as her skin can get quite itchy, but one time won’t hurt.

When she’s completely rinsed off of all the products, she turns off the water and leaves the shower. She grabs a green towel to dry off her hair and body. She then puts on the purple-bottled body lotion. It’s really moisturising, plus it smells good as well.

She then puts on her clean clothes. She’s thinking whether or not she should put on her jeans, she however decides against it as Lucius has seen her in her underwear before, anyway.

She then leaves the bathroom to see Lucius sitting on the bed, waiting for her to finish her shower. He smirks when he sees what she’s wearing. “Someone is Severus’ biggest fan, huh?” he asks in a teasing tone which makes Y/N’s cheeks turn bright red.

He chuckles at her reaction. “So, what did you think about the products, hmm?” he asks her curiously.

Y/N gives him a shy smile. “They were amazing. My hair feels so soft. And Narcissa’s shower gel and body lotion really do smell good. Where did you buy them?” she questions.

Lucius smiles. “We actually get them custom made. Only the best for a Malfoy. We can get some for you” he offers.

She shyly smiles. “You really don’t have to. Don’t you at least want some money for them? They must be really expensive” she says as she thinks of how expensive custom made skincare is in her dimension.

Lucius shakes his head. “No need to, darling. We have lots of money, but I am sure you already know that. No, consider it a gift from us” he says as he smiles. She nods at that.

They then reenter the guest room to see Snape sitting on the bed while reading a potions book. He looks up from his book and smirks when he sees Y/N’s t-shirt.

“Well, I will join Draco and Cissy in the living room. They probably want to sleep soon as well, anyway. Good night Y/N, Severus” he says to them. They both mutter “good night” as he leaves the room.

Y/N then jumps up in the bed, snuggling close to Snape as she throws her arms around him, tiredly. He chuckles at that. “Well, good night, princess” he says as he smirks at her.

She mutters a tired “Good night, Sev” as she nuzzles her face in his chest. She immediately falls asleep.

Snape then levitates his book to a nearby table and turns off the lights by using wandless magic. He covers them both with the duvet as he gently caresses her right cheek. He then kisses her forehead and falls asleep as well.

The next morning, Y/N is lying on top of Snape, hugging him like a teddy bear.

When he wakes up and notices, he smirks. He then gently rubs her back, pinching her skin lightly to wake her up. She gasps as she’s wide awake.

“Good morning. I did not tickle you this time” he says in his velvety morning voice as he smirks at her.

Y/N blushes. “Good morning” she shyly mutters. They both then rise from the bed to put on their clothes. Y/N puts her necklace on as well.

They then head to the dining room together. Breakfast is already served. “Good morning, you two. Draco will go to a friend’s home to stay there for a few days. And I will go to Diagon Alley to catch up with some friends of mine” Narcissa states.

They both mutter “Good morning” to the three Malfoys as they nod at the information. They all then eat their breakfast which is more like a brunch. There’s a lot of food to choose from.

When they all are done eating, Narcissa and Draco wave goodbye as they apparate away from the Manor. Lucius then gains Snape and Y/N’s attention. “What would you like to do now that Cissy and Draco are somewhere else?” he asks them.

Y/N thinks for a while. “How about we go to your library and read a bit?” she suggests. Both Snape and Lucius do like to read.

Both men nod at her as they head towards the library. Y/N quickly retrieves her Harry Potter book from her bag in the guest room on the way.

They all then sit down on the green, comfortable chairs. Y/N is in the middle while Snape is to her right and Lucius is to her left.

Y/N is reading Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Both Lucius and Snape look at the book in her hand, curious. “Reading about the Order, hmm?” Lucius asks, intrigued.

He’s still not entirely familiar with the books. Do they follow the story of Harry Potter’s fight against the Dark Lord? Or do they simply tell information about the Wizarding World?

“Well, the book is not just about the Order. It’s just that it’s introduced in this book. By the way, you are in it, Lucius. So is Severus” Y/N says as she gives him a smile.

He smirks at her. “Is that so? I trust that I am awesome in it - maybe succeeding in doing my missions for the Dark Lord?” Lucius asks, hopeful.

Snape gives what could be described as a snort. Oh, Lucius, do you really believe that?

“Um… Well, I don’t want to spoil anything for you. Maybe you would like to read it?” she offers.

Lucius thinks about it for a while. “Sure” he simply says. He then grabs the book and starts reading it. While they look at Lucius, Snape gives a devilish smirk. He has a feeling where this is going.

“What in Salazar Slytherin is this? Not only do I fail my mission, that incompetent Sirius Black punches me in the face?!” Lucius suddenly exclaims while gritting his teeth. Y/N can’t help but giggle at him.

He sighs as he hands back the book to her. “… I am NOT happy about that. Keep laughing at me and I WILL tickle you” he warns Y/N as he gives her a smirk. She quickly stops giggling as she then blushes.

Lucius then notices her necklace. “I am glad you are wearing the necklace that Cissy and I gave you, Y/N” he says as he smiles.

She smiles back. “Yeah, I love it. Thank you” she shyly says.

Snape then hands her another book. “I believe you did not finish this one the last time you were here” he says.

Y/N looks at the book. It’s the book in the fantasy genre that Lucius gave her to read!

Lucius smiles. “Yeah, we kept it out here in case you wanted to finish it” he states.

Y/N gives both of them a big smile. “Thank you, I was wondering how the book ends. It is quite interesting” she says as she then starts to read the book. They put a bookmark where she left off. She smiles at that.

They use their time to read until Narcissa returns from Diagon Alley at dinner time. Y/N stays at Malfoy Manor for almost a week. She lets her friends know, of course.

However, her little holiday will be interrupted as they get a new mission from Dumbledore.

[merlinfic]

group ask for lost fics #25

Hi y’all! Below are a few lost fics that us mods just can’t seem to find. That being said, we’re hoping that you lovely followers are able to help! If anyone knows any of the fics below please reply or send in an ask with which anon/user and group ask that the fic corresponds with!

Note: previous group asks and all lost fics!

Anon 1 asked:

i'm looking for a lost fic... it's a magic reveal where arthur already knows and is trying to get merlin to admit to his magic. he ends up trying to fall out of a window so merlin would save him and reveal his magic. i hope that's not too vague or weird of a description?

That could be A Waiting Game by CaffeinatedFlumadiddle!

Anon 2 asked:

Hi! Thank you to everyone running this blog, it's absolutely incredible and I can't even imagine the amount of work it must take. I was hoping that you could help me find a fic? I think Gwaine got mad at Arthur for dismissing Merlin's warnings during hunts, but Arthur and Merlin reveal that they have a secret code, like if Merlin says he has a bad feeling that means there are bandits. Thank you so much!

Thanks anon for sending in Insight by Naelyn!

Anon 3 asked:

Hello! I was wondering if you could help me find a fic? The most I took away from it was Merlin ran away from Camelot and joined a druid camp, he also interacted with Mordred during that time who helped him use and train with his magic better. I'm sorry for the overall common description but my memory sucks and I didn't really get 'into' the fic before losing it. Hope you all have a good rest of your week!!

Anon 4 asked:

Hi, I'm looking for the very first Merthur fic I ever read. I believe it was high school au, Arthur is popular and Merlin not. Arhur makes a bet with his friends to seduce Merlin but ends up falling for him. Merlin of courses finds out about the bet and drama ensues. I think Merlin played the piano and there was a Merthur kiss on the piano bench. I think it was on fanfiction.net. Thanks a lot! xx

@statistical-nightmare asked:

I am looking for a fic where before it starts, Arthur found out about Merlin’s magic and is blanking Merlin. People have noticed that Merlin is out of favour and he gets attacked and hurts his hand. But he doesn’t tell Arthur about it, and when he’s taking off Arthur’s armour and bringing his dinner he sounds like he’s in pain but Arthur thinks he’s attention seeking and ignores it. The next morning he notices Merlin’s black eye and finds out that Merlin had a broken hand the whole time. Thanks!

Anon 5 asked:

Hello my loves. I hope you, or one of your followers, can hep me find a lost fic. It went through the event of the canon series but with Merlin offering his, uh, extra services to Arthur. They don't sleep together until after he banished Gwen. There is slight dub-con after that particular event. Arthur marrys Gwen but he still craves for Merlin and after sometime Gwen tells him to sleep with others because she has doubts about herself? I checked both the bedwarmer and FWB tags first to be sure.

That could be The Other Side of the Coin by amy_lupin!

Anon 6 asked:

Lost fic: Merlin gets injured protecting Arthur, Arthur writes his injury off as him being dramatic, it's a BAMF Merlin fic with merthur and a magic reveal, please help!!

Anon 7 asked:

helloo i’m looking a lost ficc :)) it’s where merlin and arthur and the knights are on a trip or whatever and this spirit or something (sorry the details are blurry) traps them and they have to face all the spirits that have died by their hands. merlin has the hightest death toll and when arthur’s come up merlin cries when he reunites with freya. nimueh makes an appearance after uther does and makes him trip over but arthur’s like “wtf u killed my dad??” then they find out he’s immortal and percival makes a joke about chopping his head off to see if the body or the head would grow. it’s a preslash i think and past freylin

Thanks anon for sending in Echoes by Minted_Midas!

Anon 8 asked:

Hello! I was wondering if you guys can help me find this fic. It was a time travel fic where Merlin went back in time, because Arthur (who was his husband) died. He helps Morgana before she turns evil, and some of the story was told in his flash backs and some of it was from Morgana 's POV, she also became like a Dutchess or something after black mailing Uther that she knew he was her real father

Thanks anon for sending in About Time by rosewatergold and always been the tower by springofviolets!

Anon 9 asked:

hey guys! hope you’re doin well! i lost this fic. it was kinda short, but anyways. in it, arthur has just come back and he learns that gay marriage is a thing and it’s legal and he kisses merlin and admits his feelings??

Thanks to @statistical-nightmare for sending in A Moment of Pride by fifty_fifty!

@lindiloo02 asked:

Hi, thank you for your blog, I've been following it for years and found some true gems. Im hoping you can help me find a fic. A part of it was based on the unicorns curse, when Arthur makes merlin eat the rat stew, merlin not only eats it all up but has had it before. Arthur realises just how bad merlin has had ut growing up. I think there are other examples like that in the fic but I can't remember than. Thank you so much ❤❤❤

Thanks to @fractalinferno​ for sending in All is Sweet that Ends Sweet by TyalanganD!

And, as always, this post will be updated if any fics are found!

[chal-lelerc]

ok so like. here’s my harry potter house thing. i’m ngl i tried to do this but then i deleted it bc it was getting too long and i didn’t have the attention span but. it kept sticking in my brain so i decided to pick it back up and as such, i’ve lost the original post but it was a quarantine activity (sort drivers into houses, assign quidditch positions, explain) posted by @verstappened​. houses done first, then positions, then explanations for both. i tried to make feasible teams, i.e making sure there arent too many of a single position per house, so this really screwed some of the sorting but oh well.

i did the houses first, then positions, then explanations in that order for the most part.

5/13/20: the sorting was mostly done before i heard all the differing opinions (of which there were many!)

5/19/20: alright so this is literally like 2 months old but i’ve just finished it lolol

Lewis Hamilton:

Slytherin: THE GLORY MAN. the aloof kind of superiority, confidence, is top dog, he’s simply the pinnacle of it all. kind of lethal and doesn’t do the whole ‘looking up to others’ things (outwardly, but he seems very soft on the inside tbh). very majestic and is almost a gryffindor, the kind of slytherin that Merlin is. hard-working, got here from incredibly humble beginnings, which kind of stands out from the rest, but he’s clearly now at the top level of society. still very protective of Others. scarily ambitious. Was originally a gryffindor but I wanted the brits to be in different houses for their quidditch positions to work. Could honestly go either way though.

Seeker: more glory. periodt. he stays winning and scoring the most points. clutch-man. Speedy boy, kind of in a different world than everyone else when competing (he’s always at the front lifetimes away from everyone else lmao. playing a diff game.)

Valtteri Bottas:

Hufflepuff: HE SEEMS. LIKE. A. BIG. CHILD. always relegated and brushed off but is literally God-Tier and no one can convince me otherwise. i consider him to be rather reliable (reflecting only the 2019 season at least lmao). a bit of a vindictive streak bc he knows what he’s Capable Of even when others underestimate him. has a very bright smile.

Beater: have u seen him. he’s a big boy even though he’s 5′8 and only an inch taller than lando norris he seems bigger than he is ok

Charles Leclerc:

Slytherin: this bitch. what a snake. hiss hiss.

Chaser: he wants what lewis hamilton has but chose the wrong position. still a star in his own right. pride and joy of his house, will be at the lead of every formation play unless told otherwise by his head of house, to which he will brood and complain ab but comply in the end bc he wants Team Success and loyalty to his Family. scores the most points on the team and people act like he carries even though he literally has a partner(s).

ok but fr my gut said charles is a slytherin (do i really need to explain why? very critical, doesn’t accept inferiority, somehow succeeds. just a feeling his brain seems to fit motorsport politics well), but i was seriously contemplating whether he’d be a gryffindor to max’s slytherin instead. but then i saw someone mention the whole lion schtick and i was like for all of max’s brattiness he is Gryffindor so sharl is snake. sorry don’t make the rules just follow them.

further edit: this was written before he started streaming (this is how old this draft is) and can u believe him he’s the epitome of the “not all slytherins r evil wenches” idea

Sebastian Vettel:

Ravenclaw: idk for all of Seb’s goofiness he just seems cerebral to me. Seems to know mildly irrelevant facts and is really quite smart however is hopeless in the modern age. Kind of that wise old(er he’s not that old) man knowledge. I’d trust him to give me all the life advice I need but also to write a 10 page essay on the nuances of the effect of emotion on verbal language (which we all know he is very experienced with).

Keeper: it’s the protective Dad Power.

Max Verstappen:

Gryffindor: WAS REALLY GONNA PUT HIM IN SLYTHERIN BC HE’S A NASTY LIL SHIT. TOTAL BRAT. GIVES FUCK ALL WHAT OTHERS SAY. BUT HE IS LION AND LION IS HE SO GRYFFINDOR IT IS. also just bc he needs to oppose sharl in every way possible it’s called Poetic Cinema. also his driving style is clearly the bravery and confidence to the point of recklessness that is prevalent among gryffindors.

Chaser: again, he must oppose Charles. so, not a seeker although he’s clearly singularly the most prized competitor. just like Charles, pride and joy of house, their star chaser. the comparisons never end. the competition never ends. the fighting never ends. one of the most interesting and dynamic performers to watch, is predictable in that he’s not predictable except that he will always be aggro to the max. will always be in trouble for getting rough bc that’s Not His Job but that’s just the gryffindor disregard for rules. master point scorer.

Alex Albon:

Gryffindor: was really a toss up btwn this and Hufflepuff but the ultimate deciding factor was the fact that I wanted all the British Boys to be seekers. he really just sticks it out as max’s teammate like a real one (nothing against max, everything against Helmet Merco) for the good of the team, still is sweet with max anyway. fitting that they’re in the same house too.

Seeker: he’s not the small boy that lando and lewis are but he is (thai/)British. very special boy (big ups on the promotion even tho it was Sad Times for Pear) deserves very special job. also he has a hot girlfriend (alex albon who i only know lily he’s boy toy) idk how that’s relevant but it seems fitting.

Carlos Sainz:

Ravenclaw: bc he’s a spaniard but is still better at english than Lando (i think everyone is tbh). Seems to be a quiet type of smart, sensible, but perhaps this is just the consequence of being compared to Lanno at all times LMAO (no hate all love bby Lannd). would be the type of ravenclaw to follow his friends on absolutely idiotic ventures but would step in to prevent near death or likely-legal-problem causing actions (and only then; otherwise it’s every man for themselves and everyone is free to make a fool of themselves and break some laws. carlos may dabble in such practices.)

Chaser: seems to be a go-getter, not going for points doesn’t even cross his mind. will always be the one driving up the pitch, the strategist of sorts bc he seems big(ger) brain (than lando lololol).

Edit: I wrote this part ab him long ago but this entire section of this post is now irrelevant and canceled.

Lando Norris:

Hufflepuff: you all know why. zero explanation needed. like, none.

also has a bit of an aggressive streak which tends to catch ppl off guard. is not afraid to confront u (hello pageNO) and at times defies the hufflepuff stereotype of being perpetually happy go-lucky (he has his bad days!). but when with His True Crew he is absolutely a hufflepuff ball of energy.

Seeker: small and speedy. energetic to the max. small. quirky and different from the rest, so he gets the special job. small. everyone would kill to protect him. small.

Daniel Ricciardo:

Gryffindor: AW I DIDN’T EVEN REALIZE THAT I PUT HIM AND MAX TOGETHER. LOOK I EVEN MADE THEM BOTH CHASERS. AH HOW BIGBRAIN MY MIND IS. everything ab dan is gold. golden skin, the colors in redbull and renault, his smile, just the vibes. he’s just got the enthusiasm and charisma and this intensity of a gryffindor. super aggressive, his late breaking (from his rbr at least) is legendary and maddening with how he pulls it off. is almost a hufflepuff but the gut said no.

Chaser: is Max’s teammate. so yeah. was obviously the star until younger max came to the show. a bit lost in limbo bc of it but they still work well together.

literally want to make him a hufflepuff so. bad. but i couldn’t split up maxiel. also his vibe is just different from other ‘puffs like stroll so.

Esteban Ocon:

Slytherin: ask max.

Chaser: being characterized off of their relationship with max seems to be a theme here. will go head to head with max w/ absolutely zero shits given. talented, but the rivalry with max is entirely secondary to charles imho. still yet to show his full potential but is still quietly a thorn in max’s side. many are interested to see what he is able to do in the immediate future.

Pierre Gasly:

Hufflepuff: GUYS HE WANTS TO OWN A PANDA

Chaser: constantly trying to prove himself and score big boy points. had a stint as seeker until lando came along. did not do as well as ppl had hoped, returned to chaser and proceeded to crush it from there. praticed a lot with charles as children (the friendship dynamic w/ their houses was definitely unforseen but is amazing).

Daniil Kvyat:

Hufflepuff: really wanted to make him a slytherin but the quidditch positions didn’t work out. firmly believe this works though. more of the rough and tumble type, definitely the kind that will sock u in the nose if u write off hufflepuffs as a joke. could honestly probably be a gryffindor too with how unapologetically aggressive he can be in the name of His Beliefs. gives me big dumb himbo vibes now that i think ab it tbh which is mostly the justification here. also he has a child omg.

Chaser: but the one that’s always headbutting bludgers out of the air (torpedo bitches). also had a stint as seeker before but it Was Not His Thing. he’d much rather be chasing and throwing things than seeking things. also he’s pierre’s mate :,) would’ve been a beater but romain and valtteri will not be anything else so daniil took the boot whoops.

Sergio Perez:

Slytherin: it’s just the vibe. knows his weaknesses and is able to make up for it with his confidence and talent in his strengths. very ambitious, plays the right cards at the right times to get the right results. something ab him puts me on edge, but like in a good way; i feel like there’s always a trump card up his sleeve, like when he gets to q3 out of fucking nowhere in a racing point.

Keeper: he gives me the same vibes as seb idk what it is. very dependable, backbone of his team.

Lance Stroll:

Hufflepuff: guys have u seen the guy. he’s just here to have a good time. may seem a bit airheaded at times but he means well 99% of the time. untapped potential. seems like a no thoughts head empty canadian hockey boy (and every one of these types is a hufflepuff don’t fight it); may or may not be the only accurate description of him.

Chaser: he’s just trying his best out here. i

KEEPER?: SO I DID A QUICK GOOGLE AND HE USED TO BE A HOCKEY

GOALIE?????

so scratch my initial thoughts (tbh i didn’t really know where to put him and i originally had romain as keeper but that’s an issue to fix later on now) BECAUSE LANCE STROLL IS A keeper GOALIE AND NO ONE CAN REFUTE THIS. ABSOLUTELY NO HUMAN OF THIS EARTH. WHAT GLORIOUS INFORMATION TO STUMBLE ACROSS.

Kimi Raikkonen:

Slytherin: guys i really don’t have an in depth analysis of this but i don’t think iceman needs one.

Beater: see above^. y’all must get the vibe.

tbh could also be a keeper tho similar energies to seb and checo, but honestly his no fucks given attitude is ultimately what swayed me

Antonio Giovinazzi:

Gryffindor: he just has that majestic quality (that could also fit a slytherin but i only see red when i see antonio). look at that lion’s mane. also he’s one of kimi’s to paddock friends? seems fitting that he’s a gryffindor to kimi’s slytherin.

Chaser: plays second fiddle to the duo that is max and daniel, often regulated to vibing on the side. but he’s there and he’s important and he has potential (i’ve been seeing ppl talking ab a ferrari move and i’m positively shaken). [edit: again, this post is old.]

im sorry its glaringly obvious idk much about him asdfjasldkd

Kevin Magnussen:

Slytherin: guys lots of these are just self explanatory sorry if i seem like im taking the cheap way out but it’s fact. brundle and crofty call him a great white shark for crying out loud.

Beater: unapologetically chaotic. lurking around the edges making people feel hunted. spends more time playing baseball in the middle of the matches than quidditch and sometimes it backfires but it’s good fun and it sometimes works.

Romain Grosjean:

Hufflepuff: y’all he’s such dad energy and he likes to cook. gets written off a lot but he actually cares (he’s a part of the grand prix drivers assoc.!). he seems so wholesome and he spends time with his kids and their school work when he can do u feel those water drops yeah those r my tears.

Beater: i really wanted to make him a slytherin beater to make him teammates with k-mag but he’s just. not a slytherin. but i kept the beater part. spends the majority of the hufflepuff v. slytherin matches sending bludgers kevin’s way even when he doesn’t mean to. it’s always reciprocated.

George Russell:

Ravenclaw: I’VE SAID IT BEFORE AND I’LL SAY IT AGAIN THIS KID. is so marvelously well spoken and he just has such a simple yet effective way with words. he knows what’s reasonable to expect but never fails to expect the most that he can given his circumstances. again, mentioned this before but a lot of it is his accent. the glottal stop is a historically stereotypically rural (i.e. “uneducated”) thing but I’m American and I Don’t Listen to the Rules, so the accent just makes him seem so sophisticated to me especially when he’s saying things like “horriiiiiiiific” and presenting his hefty powerpoints.

Seeker: my British Boys Are Seekers headcanon continues. definitely a Golden Boy of the team kind of guy (hello tragic dumpsterfire that is williams :/ ).

Nicholas Latifi:

Hufflepuff: same boat as lance. his twitch streams are so wholesome he’s just chilling man. twitter made me write him off as daft and unnecessary at first but like fuck twitter i’m all here for ninky latvia now.

Chaser: lowkey gives me keeper vibes as well? the sensible, level-headedness. but obvs that’s lance so chaser it is. still the level-headedness that helps him hold down the fort btwn pierre and daniil who can tend to get a bit imaginative, and also the energies of them + lando.

5/19/20: so it’s quite clear to me that i grew tired of brain functions the more time i took on this and the later ones are a bit lacking and for that i’m very sorry. that being said i’m still happy to see this finished bc the idea was VERY exciting for me.

[panharmonium]

@merlinobsessionist you understand me on a spiritual level

[putting the rest of this under a cut because it just ended up being me grumping at length about fandom trends - which, yes, i am well-aware is a silly endeavour in all cases, but sometimes you just gotta have your little grump regardless, you know, for health reasons. X)  and in this particular case the grumping is probably relevant/entertaining only to myself, and you, and one or two other people here, so, tucking it away to spare everyone’s dash :) ]

the other day i was exploring the mostly abandoned wasteland that is the merlin fandom on livejournal (since that’s my original fandom home and obviously i missed out on being involved in that particular niche of lj when merlin was active, so i was feeling nostalgic and kinda curious as to it had looked like) - i stumbled over a merlin fic-finders comm and looked up my boy william just for kicks, and surprisingly, a couple of the old requests sounded like maybe i WAS involved in the merlin fandom on livejournal back then and i just don’t remember it

i think i wrote this in a past life

this is an eleven year-old comment in a mostly defunct fandom community but i felt it in my BONES

oh, my dear commenter from 8 years ago, i WISH  XD

it made me laugh, and then it made me grumpy, because obviously there were very few suggestions offered in response to these asks - the fics just don’t exist, not in any numbers.

and like, the thing is, i don’t particularly care about the shipping side of things for the most part; i always lean towards gen and that’s mostly been it, for me; that’s always been my MO in every fandom i’ve ever participated in, but - look.  if i have to witness (*checks ao3*) 23,830 (twenty four thousand. twenty four THOUSAND!!!!) instances of merlin getting together with arthur hecking pendragon, over and over and over again, in every AU configuration under the sun, then you had better believe i am ready and willing to plead the case of the only person in the merlin-verse who did not think arthur pendragon deserved merlin’s entire life.  

and of course, there’s nothing inherently wrong with arthur and merlin as an item, obviously (i mean, i can name a few things about it that don’t appeal to me personally, but that is not the same thing as a value judgment) and everybody should have fun with their own ships, always - but for me, personally, there is just...enough of that out there.  i have seen Enough.  it’s hard for me to even determine where the rest of the fandom is, under the ever-present spread of merlin/arthur content; a picture of merlin/arthur should literally be next to the dictionary entry for steamroller.

and of course, i knew it would be like this from the beginning, and i know complaining about the ubiquitousness of a particular ship in fandom is utterly silly, in the end, because it’s not like there’s anything wrong with something being ubiquitous - the whole point of fandom is to make what you love, and if that’s what everybody loves, well, hey, that’s just how it is!  that’s what people should be making - the stuff they love!  that’s what fandom is here for!  i only mutter to myself in the bubble of my own blog because the ubiquitousness makes it almost impossible for me to find what *i* love, because i don’t want to read about arthur/merlin in the first place, no matter who else appears in the fic, and also because my fave minor character, while he gets a pretty good amount of fannish screentime for someone who showed up in one episode, also suffers from the curse known as “virtually everything he features in is actually about merlin and arthur getting it on”

like - by the numbers, when you exclude merlin/arthur from will’s character tag, will retains less than 20% of his fics, some of which are already like...you know, he’s dead, or just mentioned, et cetera.  

and his poor ship tag...he and merlin have 136 fics in their tag, and at first you wanna look at that and be like - ‘hey, not bad, pal, that’s p. good for a rarepair!’  but in actuality, less than 20 of those fics are actually about him and merlin.  like...12% of his own ship tag actually belongs to him, and the rest is him being used as a plot device to get arthur and merlin together.

and i am sure that a lot of other side characters probably suffer from this, too, given the general fic distribution in this fandom, though the only person i’ve looked at for comparison purposes is freya, who is a (mostly) one-ep character like will.  she, despite that, doesn’t appear to get hit quite as hard - she seems to keep more of her fic for herself, which is nice (when i exclude merlin/arthur from the freya/merlin search, freya still retains about 65% of her fics, as opposed to will’s sad little 12%).  i’m glad for her, though - she of all people does not need to be losing fic to arthur; she has suffered enough. 

to put things in perspective, though - merlin and uther have more fics in their ship tag that earnestly focus on the tagged....hnhhmgnhn i can’t say it...relationship than merlin and will do - even filtering out every instance of dubcon/noncon.  

(and yes, i did in fact want to die when i had to actually click the merlin/uther tag on ao3 in order to check that factoid, thanks for asking.)

so, that said - i don’t generally read canon-era fic anyway, when i’m actively writing for a fandom, but since the merlin fandom sometimes feels like it consists solely of modern AU’s anyway, all i am trying to say is that it would be nice if i could pick up an AU including a character i enjoy without seeing him constantly reduced to:

merlin’s loser ex

merlin’s abusive ex (w h at)

merlin’s ex who’s kinda sorta tolerable-ish, maybe, if you squint, but just ultimately Not Right for merlin - holding merlin back, or being too overbearing, or too pushy, or Just Not Enough - or being someone who merlin stays with only bc he’s familiar and merlin’s settling for something safe and unrisky and stagnantly unfulfilling

the dude who merlin cheats on to be with arthur

the dude who cheats on merlin, bc the fic needed a reason to break up merlin and will so that white-knight!arthur could swoop in (cue me shouting ‘IN WHAT UNIVERSE DO YOU THINK WILL WOULD EVER - ’)

the dude merlin “makes mistakes with” when things with arthur aren’t going well

the friend-with-benefits who’s apparently chill with a casual arrangement, thus keeping himself conveniently out of the way of the oncoming merlin/arthur train

the friend-with-benefits who’s secretly NOT chill with a casual arrangement and who’s pining for merlin, except we all know that ain’t ever going anywhere because arthur exists, and in the meantime merlin only ever gets together with will to try and forget his problems

the friend-with-no-benefits who’s still pining for merlin (which situation, i might add, would be read completely differently if it were arthur in will’s shoes, because if that were the case then the audience would 100% be rooting for him)

the “best friend” whose only purpose in fic is to provide space for conversations/debriefs about merlin’s relationship/pre-relationship with arthur (like - i’m sorry, but there desperately needs to be some type of bechdel-esque test for will; e.g. do will and merlin have a conversation about something other than arthur pendragon?  if yes, u win, u may pass go, collect 20 dollars, congratulations)

the friend whose dislike of arthur always, ALWAYS ends up being framed as a mistake.  as will’s stubborn unwillingness to give arthur a chance, until at last will sees the light and succumbs to the irresistible beauty of merlin and arthur’s eternal love. -_-  there is vanishingly rare acknowledgement in fic of the fact that in the canon universe, all of the criticisms will makes about merlin and arthur’s relationship are not only accurate, but made in merlin’s best interests (and also, ultimately, proven right, by the end of the show - merlin tanks his whole damn life for a series of empty promises prophesying arthur pendragon’s future potential, and he gets NOTHING for his devotion.  merlin is more alone at the end of the show than he was at the beginning, when his only dream was to be loved and accepted by more than the two people who’d comprised his entire life up until that point.  and he spends at least half a decade in between the show’s hopeful beginning and its miserable end being told that he’s evil by the very person for whom he is expected to sacrifice his future.  

so what, exactly, makes will so wrong to be wary?  who among us wouldn’t be angry if we saw somebody we loved being forced to sacrifice themselves on an unforgiving altar like this?  

i don’t know the answer.  i’m not sure what it is that earns will his spot on the “destined to be shafted for arthur pendragon” list.  i don’t know if it’s an unconscious backlash to will’s refusal to hop on the arthur/merlin train, or if it’s just a superficial understanding/lack of genuine interest in his character, which, in that case, sure, i’ll give people that one, in all fairness; not everyone has spent a year picking his character apart (though i still don’t think it justifies tossing him in there just because the fic needs a random insert who can be positioned as inferior to arthur’s gloriousness).  either way, the end result is that we usually end up seeing a will who has very little in common with his source material, or who needs to ultimately step aside to make way for arthur - arthur, who never displays the same level of care toward merlin in canon that merlin shows toward him, and who actively oppresses merlin’s people for the entire duration of their relationship.  

like...it’s all just fic, obviously, and we can make characters as OOC as we want; have fun; go wild.  but at the same time, it’s impossible for me not to balk at how arthur in some of this fic is just - utterly unrecognizable.  in comparison with fic!will, arthur is the most Solicitous, Gentle, Understanding, Deeply Concerned, Invested-In-Merlin’s-Welfare-and-Inner-Thoughts creature you ever did see, and I’m just over here like - it is not like that!  it is NOT LIKE THAT!  IT HAS LITERALLY NEVER BEEN LIKE THAT.  arthur pendragon in fic sometimes interacts with merlin like - he tilts his head and listens like a therapist and affirms absolutely everything merlin says and tells him ‘gosh, i understand. tell me more. how can i help you’ - he goes about his day thinking about merlin and putting merlin first and i just - i literally have never seen this person before in my life.  who is this man?  who is this unbelievably attentive paragon of caring?  i’ve never met him before.

the entire running problem with merlin and arthur’s friendship in canon is that arthur, while he absolutely does care about merlin, tends to take merlin for granted.  merlin is just another feature of arthur’s landscape, until something dramatic happens and arthur has a little scare and saves merlin’s life, and then things go back to the way they were.  arthur doesn’t See merlin the way he should, not in the ordinary moments.  merlin goes home and spends his evenings thinking about arthur’s life; he ties himself in knots trying to help arthur develop as a person and to keep arthur safe and happy, but arthur just goes home and eats supper with his wife.  arthur does not go home and spend his nights agonizing over how he can improve merlin’s life.  he never once thinks, ‘my purpose on this earth is to serve and support my friend merlin.’  he never feels like he’s supposed to be half of some two-sided coin.  i know people like to give arthur this quality in their fic - and that’s totally fine, of course, it’s fic, have as much fun as you want - but in canon, that is just not something arthur pendragon does.  it’s not who he is shown to be.  

and yet almost every time when i go to explore fandom, i find that the person who does put merlin first in canon is perpetually elbowed aside for this extremely generous interpretation of everyone’s favorite prince.  

and i just...i always try to find the good bits in everything, and i am sometimes willing to overlook a ship i don’t personally enjoy if there’s something else about the piece that i think is great, but there’s only so many times i can read the sentence “merlin had never felt like this with anyone, not even will” in fics where merlin and will are supposed to have been dating or even married/engaged, or “will was merlin’s best friend, but he just didn’t understand” (not like arthur, of course, who merlin literally just met a week ago), or “will was great, but there was only so much of him merlin could stand in one sitting/will was great, but he was best enjoyed in small doses.”  there’s only so many times i can read a hundred different variations of that before i start to get real grumpy.  and that’s not even touching the fics where will’s portrayed less favorably than that, even.  

so, you know.  i feel grumbly about it sometimes, how this particular character is trapped in a perpetual net of always being less-than, when one of the nicest parts of fandom for me is that every character/ship can have an infinitude of possibilities, even the ones i personally think are unbelievably bizarre (which category merlin and will do not even fall into, like - it’s not an incredible leap.  merlin/mordred is a leap, okay; mordred is like seventeen years old!  leon/morgana is a leap - how on earth did that become so popular??? - but will and merlin?  that’s not a leap.)

what is it about will that makes him so tempting to trample over?  will’s only sin in canon was to look at arthur pendragon and pronounce himself utterly unimpressed.  his only crime was to tell merlin ‘this dude isn’t good for you,’ about which fact he was CORRECT, by the way - he is the first person who ever chooses to care about merlin, the first person merlin ever chooses to trust, the first friend who loves real!merlin without needing to be coaxed and convinced and taught that it’s okay.  he is the only one who ever tells merlin ‘you deserve better than this mess,’ the only one for whom merlin has always been priority number one and in whose eyes arthur isn’t even on the map.  merlin’s friendship with will (and lancelot, afterwards) is the healthiest one merlin ever gets to experience, and i wish more fannish material acknowledged it as such, as opposed to using will to set up merlin and arthur’s epic romance.  

all of this, i suppose, is just a very long way of saying that now that i am no longer avoiding spoilers and have actually started testing the waters of the wider fandom, i have come to the obstinate, utterly inflexible conclusion that will deserves his own collection of happy endings, and i don’t care if i have to write them myself.  i’ve already got the gen angle covered.  and even though i’ve never written ship!fic in my life, the fact of the matter is that spite can be a hell of a motivator, and i will bite the bullet and learn how to do it if i have to.  if people can really be out here tagging their merlin/uther fics as “schmoop” (YES. REALLY.) then by GOD, i swear, there are no excuses - this fandom can accommodate literally anything; there’s no reason it can’t accommodate stories where will wins.  let this kid have his good ending.  arthur pendragon can fall in love with merlin 23,830 times despite his and merlin’s ship flying in the face of canon, and that means will deserves his own tiny handful of stories to be actually about him, without his and merlin’s relationship being used solely as a stepping stone on the way to merlin and arthur’s 23,831st triumph.

i am just saying - if uther pendragon can fall in love with merlin and have it tagged as ‘fluff,’ then for the love of all that is good, we can give will his moment.  let will enjoy the respect he should have earned from us when he died saving both merlin and arthur’s lives.  let will be a person in his own right, instead of a plot device sacrificed to the (in)glorious altar of merthur.  let will have an inner life of his own.  let will have a best friend who doesn’t treat him like an accessory to The Greatest Love Story Ever Told.  let will himself live out The Greatest Love Story Ever Told, for once.  let will get his guy.  i may tend to focus on friendship in my own work, but there are a lot of universes out there, and when it comes to someone who has always been so alone, and so singularly focused on merlin’s wellbeing, i’m not entirely sure if friendship even feels anything different to “in love” for will at all, in at least some of these places.

let will have his happy tags.  he’s been on his own for so much of his life - let him have his simple ‘friendship’, his ‘platonic love,’ his ‘found family.’  let him have his lovestruck ‘pining,’ ‘friends-to-lovers,’ ‘angst with a happy ending,’ too, and let him keep those tags for himself.  let characters who aren’t arthur pendragon have their love stories.

i may not care much for shipping, and i would rather read gen any day of the week, but let me tell you right now, i would rather write will and merlin settling down in a haze of domestic bliss 23,830 times before i would ever want to watch merlin ditch him yet again for a dude who never matched merlin’s level of caring and investment in the canon ‘verse.

[smutandfluffohmy]

Ruler of Realms

From: Smutandfluffohmy Character Parings: Reader X Peter Pan Warnings: Spoilers for BBC Merlin.Crackhead crossover. Longggg. Request: Wow I legit thought that my requests were annoying but if you like em well I’ll keep sending 😂❤️I really would like to see one where Pan looses his mind gradually from stress or ptsd after getting lost in wonderland,or he lost the reader to a curse that sent her to Camelot (merlin bbc) and he goes looking for her and finds Morgana working with rumple.(If you didn’t watch merlin bbc it’s fine the wonderland one will do great). Also whenever u need inspo just ask -Anon X A/N: I really sat here and watched 5 seasons of ‘Merlin’ in a week . Also I’ve been sick so sorry for the lack of updates.

“Ow my head” You mumbled to yourself, trying to lift yourself off the dirt ground. Looking around trying to place exactly where you were but the simple houses didn’t show any sign as to where you were. You cracked your brain for flashes of maps you saw in Peter’s room but you still were unable to recognize this place or the markings the soldiers wore. You saw a tall man walking along side a old man mumbling something about remedies, getting up from the floor you walked closer to them making sure to go unnoticed.

“I need you to pick up these herbs for me and I’ll get home and get started on the remedie Prince Arthur requested.” The old man said walking away from the other. The tall man strode away and you followed him close behind, the dirt road slowly turned into a grass field as he continue to stagger off into the woods. ‘What the hell am I doing’ You asked yourself as you continued to follow him but in all honesty did you have a choice? One man was easier to overpower than dozens back in town.

You hid behind a tree as he bend down to gather some herbs he stumbled upon, you began to step from behind the tree when you heard him whisper something under his breath.Before you could process what he had said little flowers sprouted around him, causing a small smile to spread across his face. You stumbled back, a twig snapping under your boot causing the man to turn to look back at you, big blue eyes wide in fear.

“Sorry I didn't mean to interrupt.” You quickly said as you continued to walk away from him.

“You didn’t. I mean I wasn’t doing anything.” He blabbered on as he continued to insist that he wasn’t doing anything. With your hands outstretched in front of you, your face drew in confusion.

“No I get it you don’t want people to interrupt you when you’re practicing magic, Peter would go to this big peer on the other side of the island trying out new spells.” You laughed as a pang of sadness filled your body remembering the last time you saw Peter.

“No that wasn’t magic, magic is banned from this land.” He said stepping closer towards you.

“Well I won’t tell if you help me out.” You smiled at him, now it was your turn to take a step towards him. “I just need your help to find a way to get back home.”

“Okay fine.Fine, where are you from?” The man asked placing his hands on his hips as he began staggering towards you frustration growing on his face as he looked around.

“Neverland”

“I’m sorry where?” He said scrunching up his face and letting his hands fall to his side.

“Neverland. That’s where I’m from.” You said matching his expressions. “You know what just tell me where I am and I’ll just mosey on.” you said making a little running motion with your fingers.

“You’re in Camelot and you’ll what?” He said dismissively as if he didn’t just say he told you you were in Camelot.

“I’m sorry I think I heard you wrong. Did you just say I was in Camelot?” You questioned a hint of amusement in your voice, taking a seat on a tree stump you looked up at him. “As in King Arthur and Merlin?”

“How do you know about us?” He asked cautiously eyeing you suspiciously trying to step away from you slowly. Looking up at him you tried to rack your brain at any mention of king Arthur having any powers, this couldn’t be Merlin he’s always written as a wise elder that guides the young king.

“King Arthur?” You tilted your head slightly to the side looking him up and down.

“No I’m Merlin.” He said scrunching his face up stepping away from you.

“Well you look.. Erm different.”

“What different how? How do you know who I am?”

“Stories” You shrugged “I always imagined you with a pointy hat and a long beard.” “But they got your eyes right.” You said closing an eye and covering the bottom of his face.

~Peter Pan P.O.V~

“You’ve lowered your standards to work alongside a common witch?” Peter said strutting inside the room looking around the ornaments that adorned the walls.

“Don’t you dare talk about me like that boy” Morgana said slamming her hand down on the table in front of her.

“Father how nice of you to join us.” Rumple said clutching the quill tightly in his hand, feeling panic fill his insides.

“Father?” Morgana said looking from Peter to Rumple and back, a pang of fear filled her heart because she had never heard of a spell that could reverse the age of a person. The amount of power this teenage boy looking man in front of her had was far beyond anything she had and maybe anything Rumple had. Did Emerys know about this? This thought put her on edge realizing Emerys could be anywhere at any time if he did know how this worked.

“Thought I teached you not to work with heros since last time.” Peter said dismissing Morgana's question.

“I am no hero.” Morgana said knitting her eyebrows together anger filling the spaces worry and anxiety hadn’t already taken up.

“Tell me Rumple what exactly are you planning on doing?” Peter said tapping his fingers against the wooden table in front of them.

“Don’t tell him.” Morgana hurriedly said, wincing at just how she said it. Peter’s temper was already short but it was wearing thin especially today, he dismissively waved a hand at Morgana and another at Rumple murmuring something towards him. Morgana opened her mouth to say something again but nothing came out, with wide eyes she looked at the men in front of her.

“We’re taking over this realm” Rumple said unable to stop himself. Peter nodded understanding the situation before him.

“I always thought you were smarter than that. You’re wasting my time and ever- say what does Belle say about this?” Peter said stopping in his tracks avoiding his long tangent he was about to go into. “I don’t believe she’s rather happy about this. Go make some grandchildren and come visit me sometime.” Peter makes Rumple disappear dismissively, Rumple letting out a sight expecting more to come to him as he appeared in front of his shop. Belle arranging stuff somewhere inside the store.

“As for you, I may need your help.” Peter smiled pointing a finger at Morgana who wanted to be somewhere far from this place, far from this strange boy.

~Y/N P.O.V~

“ What are you going on about?” He said swatting your hands away

“The stories. You know you’re a really famous wizard all over the world. Well everyone mostly thinks you’re not real but I’ve studied your books and you’re brilliant!” You smiled at him running your hands through your hair looking in between the cracks of the trees.

“Brilliant?” Merlin repeated it to himself standing up a bit straighter, walking towards Camelot.

“Yes! If you can’t get me back to Neverland it would be an honor to learn from you.”  You said looking away from the sky and looking up at Merlin with hopeful eyes.

“An honor.” He whispered to himself with a big smile spreading on his face “I mean sure of course. Do you have magic?”

“I wasn’t born with it but I know a fair amount. I’ve been thought me some things throughout the years.”

“Merlin! Hurry up!” Arthur yelled riding up to the two of you.

“Guess you’re going to be meeting King Arthur.” Merlin said leaning in close to you. Arthur was still a long ways away and you didn’t know what you were expecting, Merlin wasn’t an old wise wizard maybe they also got King arthur wrong in all the stories.

“How is he? Is he as great as they say?” You said back curious as to what you were about to be subject to.

“Hmmm he’s a bit of a clodpole” Merlin said with a big smile directed towards you.

“Clodpole?” You repeated back to him scrunching your eyebrows together.

“There you are I told you we ride at m- who is this?” King arthur said looking from you to Merlin, the stories were all right he was an attractive young king. You still couldn’t determine his person but you were still hopeful.

“Y/N my lord”

“Pleasure. Merlin we need to go.” Arthur said bowing slightly at you as you did the same in return, riding away towards the castle.

“Of course sire I’m right behind you.” Merlin called out to him turning towards you “Sorry I have to leave but I promise I’ll teach you everything I know once I’ve returned.” He said walking in the direction Arthur rode down.

“Let me come with you!” You called out to him trying to match his pace.

“No it’s far too dangerous.” He shook his head adjusting the bag that was swung across his body.

“I’m more than capable of handling myself and I can help.” You bargained with him trying to walk in front of him but failing as you could barely keep up to walk besides him.

“Help how?” He questioned.

“I’m a great nurse. I can heal anything”

“Well Gaius can’t come along but I need to ask Arthur first.” He said thinking about your offer and if it was even possible to bring you along.

~Peter P.O.V~

“Look isn’t this nice? Running an army, killing a corrupt king. You know there was a time where I would’ve been just like him.” Peter said turning to talk to Morgana as he pointed at the dead body of the evil king. “But I’ve changed, I have to because that’s!” He said shoving his finger more aggressively at the king. “That! Is what got me Y/N taken away from me!” He said standing up harshly from the throne he was slumped in.

“You’re really quite did you know? It’s boring.”

~Y/N P.O.V~

Merlin packed up all of his medical supplies making sure he didn’t miss anything. Peering into the bottles that were laid out neatly in rows on shelves lined alongside each other.

“Fascinating. So tell me in the case of internal bleeding what do you do? Because I haven’t found a way to completely heal someone of that.” Gaius said making you turn around to look at him and join him where he was sitting.

“Well firstly the-” You smiled making motions with your hands, you couldn’t remember the last time you could talk about this stuff with anyone because no matter how badass the boys may think they are they would always shutter at the ideas of what was inside their bodies.

“We have to go.” Merlin said coming out of his room gathering some more things on his way to the door.

“I’ll tell you the minute we come back.I promise” You said smiling at Gaius who crossed his hands over the journal he has opened up in front of him.

You followed closely behind Merlin running to catch up to him. “I don’t know if this is a good time to tell you but I can’t ride a horse.” You said swinging the other medical bag across your body clutching the strap in your hands.

“Umm no worries you’ll just ride with me.” He smiled at you pointing at the horse which he rides all the time.

“You know for someone so great you’re really kind.”

“Were you expecting me to act like-” Arthur passed by as he was in deep conversation with Gwaine. “That.” Merlin teasingly said pointing at Arthur.

“He can’t be that bad if you care about him.” You said looking at Arthur as he smiled and talked with the knights.

“Only because I have to.” Merlin shrugged securing his medical bag to the saddle of the horse.

“Nobody has to do anything.” You smiled shaking your head and walking over to the knights as they fooled around with each other leaving Merlin standing there clenching and unclenching his hands. Your words played over in his head, he knew what was at stake if he didn’t but he couldn’t get them out of his mind as they rode through the forest.

The horses hooves trailed faster on the damp forest floor, instinctively you wrapped your hands tighter around Merlin. You could face dozens of boys with very sharp objects they shouldn’t be handling without blinking an eye but Neverland didn’t have horses, Neverland didn’t have animals that could trample you if you made a wrong move.

“Are you okay?” Merlin asked tilting his head back to look at you, your face white in fright trying to put on your best smile.

“Yes of course.” You smiled at him.

As soon as a smile tried spreading across your face an arrow flew past one of the knights face, they all got off their horses and hunched over looking through the low tree branches and bushes to see who was out there. Arthur stretched his sword out in front of him to move aside a bush and as he did a man lunged out to attack him and as if on cue other men emerged from the shadows of the forest and attacked the rest of the knights. Merlin tensed up besides you as his eyes scattered around, worry filling every crevasse in his face a look you recognized in Peter from the last time you saw him.

“Do what you have to I’ll take the fall for it.” You whispered to him as you reached to get a sword from one of the foes that laid in the ground dead. Gripping the handle tightly in your hands you trusted it into the back of a guy Percival was fighting, the guy turned around in a heat of anger and brought his arms over his head and was bringing it down. Your blood ran cold and your breathing stopped, your body preparing itself for the impact and outcome. As soon as the blade was inches above from you it along with the man made a sharp turn to the left, the sword digging itself into the forest floor.

Percival hitting the guy with the blunt end of his sword making a horrible thud sound as his body fell limp on the floor. The fighting buzzed around you Percival  reaching over shaking you out of your disbelief and asking you if you were okay, his voice sounding muffled over the clinking of metal against each other, all you could do was nod. Percival made his way to help out his friends and you followed presuit to offer your help, the fight felt like it was dragging on for hours but felt absent for most of the time.

“Good job Y/n, where did you learn how to fight like that?” Arthur said smiling at you, the fight had been over for an hour but time was becoming twisted in your mind after seeing your possible death so vividly.

“Peter taught me how to fight, I’m better than him with a sword but he’s amazing with a bow and arrow.” You smiled remembering peter constantly insisting that the reason you were so good with a sword was because he was a great teacher.

“Peter?” Leon asked as he looked over at Merlin who was inspecting some of their wounds.

“He’s like the king from where I’m from.” You shrugged as you winced pressing a piece from your torn shirt against a wound that was bleeding on your forearm.

“Where are you from?” Leon said curiously and at that Arthur also leaned in closer. Your mouth opened to answer but were cut short from the man groaning waking up from the floor. The knights all reached for their weapons as the man sat up.

“Who sent you?” Arthur said pointing his sword at the man who looked from the sword to up at Arthur and back.

“My lord sent us.”

“And who might that be?” Arthur pressed on inching the sword closer to the mans chest.

“He didn’t tell us his name but he killed our king Ranulfus and he’s with Princess Morgana so we didn’t ask many questions.” The man said swallowing down hard wishing he wasn’t currently in this situation. Everyone tensed up at the mention of this princess Morgana your face blank with confusion the man looked up at you curiously.

“We must turn back.” Elyan said looking at everyone waiting for them to agree.

“No we have to see what we are dealing with first besides we’re not far from Ranulfus land.” Arthur said pointing at the castle that was in close view from where they were standing.

“From what I heard Ranulfus is a ruthless king so not only are we going to have to deal with Morgana but also whoever this is.” Leon said carefully looking at everyone around him.

~Peter P.o.v~

“Look they’re walking straight into my trap.” Peter smiled to himself walking in front of the big window that overlooked the kingdom. ‘Alot to fix’ he thought to himself as he saw the people that walked down in the kingdom making a mental note to do so as soon as he took care of the magical murder king Arthur.

“Come on smile you’re going to see your brother.” He said slumping down in the throne resting his chin on his hand looking out the window waiting patiently for them to get closer.

~Y/N P.O.V~

The knights opened the doors to the castle, you scrunched the cloak tighter in your fists. The hood falling in front of your eyes, the man that helped them get inside the kingdoms walls said the people wouldn’t take kindly to a woman. Once you walked inside the walls you could see why as the kingdom was filled with criminals mixed with regular village people that were just trying to go on with their life.

“King Arthur what a pleasure.” Peter said throwing everyone against the wall and keeping them there, the pressure pressed hard against your chest struggling to call out to hi, but his eyes were glued on Arthur.

You looked to your side to see the knights trashing and clawing at the invisible hands that held them against the wall. They tried their best but all it caused was more pressure to press against all of you, you could feel your shoulders dig harder against the stone wall.

“I think I have your sister.” Peter smiled and waved his hand at Morgana who was slumped on a chair. Arthur let out a gasp looking from Morgana to Peter.

“You killed her!” Gwaine called out in between grunts causing Peter to remove his attention from Arthur who was still heaving over on the floor.

“So this is King Arthur, so you must be…” Peter said talking to Gwaine.

“Gwaine. Sir Gwaine to you.” Gwaine said and you cringed in your cloak knowing just how short tempered Peter could get sometimes.

“Arthur. Gwaine.” Peter said letting Gwaine fall hard on the hard stone floor he did the same with Leon who was next to you.

“And who are you?” Peter said standing in front of you, you felt your breath getting shaky and your eyes getting heavy. “I asked you a question.” There it was, his temper rising and your mind drifting your body digging further into the wall. He reached over to pull down your hood, harshly pulling it off of you and as soon as he did everyone that was still against the wall fell down to their knees.

Peter rushed to catch you before you could fall to the ground, pulling you close to him he felt everything melt away.

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. Are you okay?” Peter said tugging your hair away from your face and rubbing his thumb on your cheek. “Did they hurt you?” He said as you could see his anger slowly bubbling inside of him, you realized you haven’t said anything and stood frozen looking at him unable to believe that it was actually him.

“No no they’ve treated me so nice and protected me.” You said throwing yourself into his arms digging your face into his chest, tears brimming your eyes. “Magic is outlawed here.” You whispered quietly enough for just him to hear “Peter this is Merlin he helped me alot.” You said quickly following it up pointing towards Merlin who along with the Knights cautiously approached Morgana.

“THE Merlin?” Peter whispered to you.

“Yes but they don’t know and if they knew about the magic they would kill him.” You said, Peter nodded his head and wrapped his arms around you and turned to look at the them.

“I’m forever grateful and in your debt. All of yours.” Peter said looking at all their face, lingering a bit more on Merlin.

“Why’d you kill her?” Arthur asked his fingers twitching towards his sword.

“I have a black heart but hers was rotten. It was kind of impressive but a rotten heart is what got me into this mess and Y/N into your realm.” Peter said bringing you closer towards him.

“Well it seems everything here is fine we should get going back to Neverland.” Peter said removing his arm from around your shoulder and snaking his hand into yours.

“Wait! You can’t leave this kingdom without a king!” Arthur called out to Peter.

“Well then it’s yours.” Peter said waving his hand dismissively at Arthur who furrowed his eyebrows together looking from you to Peter and finally at Merlin as if he could fix this situation through you.

“I can’t- you need to rule this kingdom.” Arthur said at the verge of pleading as he thought about how it would work to rule a kingdom that was so far and detached from camelot and it all boiled down to the fact that he couldn’t.

“Well..” Peter said and you could see the thoughts that were running through his mind. “I’ll do it.” He said taking everyone by surprise and Arthur let out a sigh of relief.

“Thank you so much I hope we can be allies an-” Arthur said letting his hands fall to the side of this body.

“BUT you must make magic legal, in this and all the kingdoms.” He said, you and Merlin tensed up, the knights waiting to see how their king responded.

“I can’t do that.”

“Well then I hope whoever claims this throne becomes your allies.” Peter shrugged turning around once more.

“Wait! Do I have to answer now?” Arthur said dancing around the answer carefully already seeing how wild Peter’s emotions where.

“You have until tomorrow morning Arthur Pendragon. You can stay here if you want.”

“Thank you Sir…”

“Peter. Peter Pan.”

“Thank you for your hospitality Sir Peter Pan.” Arthur bowed and followed to where Peter pointed, following the smell of food as all their stomachs growled loudly walking a bit faster towards the waiting meals.

“I guess we’re ruling a kingdom now.” Peter laughed twirling you around laughing as your laughters echoed through the room. “My queen.” Peter said laughing in the same posh way Arthur talked crashing down on the big king’s throne pulling you into his lap.

“My king.” You laughed mimicking Peter, at that moment the time you were separated slipped away as an invisible weight that sat on your hearts disappeared.Your head rested on his chest listening to his heart beating rhythmically, his hands tangling in your hair. His heart slowed down at the familiarity of this moment making the thoughts that plagued his mind slowly slipped away.

You played with the hem of his shirt letting your eyes close curling into his body noticing how warm he was and how cold you were. Taking a deep breath you missed how no matter where he was Peter always smelled like a freshly rained on forest. He embodied a warm day after a storm.

The sounds of chatter from the dining room traveled and filled the room lulling you to a bliss. Behind you Morgana's lifeless body fell on the cold unforgiving stone floor with a tud.

[thegeminisage]

i’m gonna liveblog my rewatch of 2.08 because i can

it’s stupid long so here’s the cut

just to give you an idea of how fast this switch flipped for me at the start of this episode when uther is like “u will find no one who embodies nobleness better than my son arthur” i went “PFFFFFT” & had a good chortle

i have a lot to say about this duel challenge sequence. 1. why are strangers always coming in and tossing their glove on the floor. everyone in that room is armed. just take them out! 2. arthur picks up the glove first this time, unlike 1.03. guess he can learn after all 3. he does it BEFORE SEEING HER FACE god classic he’s so fucking stupid

everyone getting their panties in a twist over having to fight a WOMAN when in reality she goes on to kick his ass is like...both tiresome & hilarious

i used to really be on the fence about the Vibe between merlin & arthur because while they seemed quite happy to die for one another from the get-go most of the time arthur is just being MEAN and merlin isn’t as mean back and it’s like :/ ok i don’t get what everyone else is so heart-eyes over. but in 2.08 they do a lot of confiding in one another and just general talking about plot-stuff where arthur’s insults are...not absent, but kept to a minimum, and idk it’s nice! it’s nice. less like arthur is a massive bully and more like they’re Companions. i’m not hopeful about it lasting bc this show doesn’t know the meaning of the words “consist continuity” but it was reeeeeaally good here

arthur’s face when he lost to a G I R L and uther just walked out with no comment. even back when i still hated him i was like “ouch”

that being said it was a welcome change of pace to see merlin giving ARTHUR shit for once. finally

upon morgause and morgana’s first meeting when morgause says “i hope you will remember me fondly” i went “WOW THAT’S GAY” because i didn’t KNOW and cathy told me later she had to put her head in her hands for five whole minutes. don’t shoot me i’m just the messenger they’re the ones who wrote it that way

my favorite thing about morgause is that i couldn’t immediately figure her out. i’m in the habit of throwing out guesses about future plot points for fun, because i’m a writer and that’s how i deconstruct things, and since this show was kind of meant to be kid-friendly i’m usually right. but as far as morgause went...i didn’t have a clue. i had NO IDEA this whole ep would be like this

i’ve said this before (not on this blog tho) but arthur is like...really eager to die. i keep joking that he has a death wish but upon further reflection i don’t think he’s actively seeking to end his life as much as he would be relieved to die for something noble like honor or whatever because then he would have...done it right, if that makes any sense, and wouldn’t have to worry about screwing it up anymore. he doesn’t want to die but he craves a good death. to prove to his dad and himself that he’s made of the right stuff?? i’m not being very clear. this concept requires more thought

it’s REALLY a lot for me that uther would rather throw arthur in his own chambers than have him find out about ygraine. yyyyikes

merlin sneaking in that rope was so cute. he finally got the group’s communal braincell for a few minutes

on the other hand after the troll episodes i am SO tired of dung being played for laughs. i really suffered

also man i’m so glad morgana finally got some sleep it’s what she deserves

this Dead Parent talk really mcmurdered me. both merlin and arthur lost a parent when they were very young & they now cannot remember said parent and we HAVE THAT IN COMMON so every single word they said was like an arrow straight to my heart!!!!!!! like as good as the ending to this episode was (and OH it was good OHHHHH it was GOOD) i think this right here is what truly softened me up towards arthur. this is relatability, this is emotional vulnerability, this is a genuine human connection made between EQUALS and frankly it’s exactly what i’ve been wanting from these guys for a season and a half. their willingness to die for each other is good stuff to be sure but it’s EMPTY without some meat to back it up & we’re finally getting what we deserve

“i’d do anything for even the vaguest memory” like they didn’t have to go that hard & read me for filth like that but they did. they did. arthur. babe. my guy.

almost every time someone comes in to speak with uther he’s eating and he has like an entire mini-banquet in front of him even though he’s all by himself. like, an entire plate of grapes, a whole-ass chicken, an intact loaf of bread, a bowl FILLED with whole uncut apples...wtf??

“what would YOU know about magic, merlin?” “nothing ;)” i did have a good chortle truly

i’ve already made my points about arthur and a good death but MAN he was hasty to put his head on that chopping block for no good fucking reason at all. holy shit. him casually doing that swing-thing he does with his sword to the axe ahead of time really adds a lot to this entire thing and also aged me ten years

when arthur was like “what if my father’s attitude towards magic is wrong” and “surely not everyone who practices magic can be evil” i gasped so fucking loud. so fucking loud

and the worst part is you can practically feel merlin’s heartbeat pick up. just LOOK at his “wtf am i hearing is this for real could my dreams actually come true” face. but at the same time, he’s got to be the one with a healthy suspicion here because arthur is in over his head. so he STILL can’t trust it. and then naturally it goes to hell so quickly that the chance for merlin to confide in arthur is lost. i can’t believe this took 4 irl years and five seasons. watching this live must have been like TORTURE. i’m practically bingeing it and i’m still suffering deeply

it’s very odd to me that arthur specifically said his mother died before he opened his eyes but the first thing ygraine says to him is that she remembers him staring up at her. to me that’s an obvious clue that she’s a fake, and the cutaway during that line to merlin’s face tells me he had the same suspicion (and that he’s kind of horrified by it)

ARTHUR FEELS SO GUILTY FOR HER DYING AND I’M ALSO DYING AND SLDFKMGHLSKDFJH

i know for a fact that ygraine’s telling of these events is slightly altered from the truth too...there’s no way that uther would have been so overcome with grief that he went on to commit genocide if he knew beforehand that his wife would die and was willing to sacrifice her

on the other hand, there’s also a cutaway to morgause’s face during this speech in which she looks surprised or confused at what ygraine says, which doesn’t add up if she was pulling these strings, so...What Is The Truth

not to be like this but merlin bearing witness to this whole series of events is like...there’s some things that once you go through them with somebody things between you change and there’s a new intimacy there...i don’t expect much from a show that likes to return to the status quo but in my heart it’s how i feel

OH BOY HERE WE GO. arthur arrives in camelot and pulls his sword out as soon as he leaves his horse leaving a visibly spooked merlin behind him this is the STUFF

“arthur was born of magic” is really a hell of a line because even though i already knew this backstory i hadn’t stopped to consider it like that...no, magic is not a crucial part of arthur’s identity and how he views himself the way it is for merlin and morgana, but it’s still a part of his history and what made him who he is, that made him alive and different from other people. his hatred and fear of it becomes so much more tragic in that light. i think also there was such a clear line drown before between people who are magic and people who are not and for me, mentally, arthur kind of...swapped sides, or is at least straddling the border

merlin’s absolute FURY at uther’s hypocrisy is like...........fucking. another thing i wanted to see for a season and a half. imo there’s not nearly enough meat to the fact that merlin is magic and ultimately serves uther who is trying to decimate him and his kind - has actually SAVED UTHER'S LIFE on MULTIPLE occasions. this is the first time this show actually went “hey uther is responsible for the deaths of hundreds of people and that’s really not at all ok” and i am SO into it. like, no, he’s not misguided. he’s not “just grieving.” he’s a murderer. he’s responsible for genocide.

the final 9 minutes of this episode feature arthur pendragon being absolutely FURIOUS. he’s LIVID. he’s PISSED. and i love it more than anything else this show has done so far

i genuinely, truly believed he didn’t have this in him. never in my WILDEST DREAMS could i have imagined arthur doing this. i had written it off as the stuff of fanfics. but holy shit my man snapped

HE👏DID👏THAT👏

reasons i did not see this coming at all even a little: 1. i figured there was no way arthur would get over his anti-magic thing until near the end (i know it must come back later, but STILL) 2. i did not believe for one second he could ever seriously stand up to his father for more than a few minutes at a time 3. most of what’s making arthur so goddamn pissed is that he thinks his dad killed his mom on purpose but he’s also showing a fair amount of horror at the fact that uther hunted down and killed everyone even remotely associated with sorcery like animals. do you know what that is? does anybody else understand the enormity of this? HE IS SHOWING EMPATHY. i DID NOT believe he was capable of it.

i do feel a way about how uther started this scene from a place of cool confidence - he was handing out orders, “leave us and no one comes in,” manipulating the situation, “she was lying to you, magic users are trying to destroy us,” and finally trying to close the door on the topic and reassert control, “i am your kind and your father and you will SHOW ME SOME RESPECT” - and arthur was not only having none of it (the way his eyes narrowed as uther’s casual “she was lying”...oh boy) he TURNED THE TABLES and had uther ON THE DEFENSIVE. the number of times we’ve seen uther shut other people down and get his way because he’s king and everyone is afraid of him and this time uther was the one who afraid LITERALLY for his life. HOW’S THAT TASTE BITCH god it was SO satisfying. like, there’s one shot where arthur is walking slowly towards him after all his verbal tactics have failed to de-escalate the situation and he’s in the backround with his eyes so fucking wide and he looks TERRIFIED. i LOVE IT

“you are my son. you would not strike an unarmed man.” “i no longer consider myself your son” AND HE STRIKES HIM

HE👏

DID👏

THAT👏

when i say that i LITERALLY screamed i am not at all exaggerating or using hyperbole. cathy asked twice if i needed to pause & collect myself. i could not have paused if my life depended on it

i’m really on the fence about merlin stopping arthur. on the one hand, arthur has suffered enough and doesn’t need to suffer more by having to carry the guilt or dadmurder. under the other, uther is a monster and needs to die, and the entire world would be better off without him

like...arthur’s face when he says “you have caused so much suffering and pain”...he really finally got it. for one beautiful brilliant moment he understood

i am NOT on the fence about merlin lying to arthur. that was the wrong way to do it. arthur 6000% deserves to know the truth and that’s only gonna come back and bite them later i’m sure (unless it never comes back at all in which case i’ll be pissed)

i’m not sure that arthur would have backed off if they had told the truth and said “uther didn’t realize your mom was gonna die so really that part wasn’t his fault”...he was really mad! but he might’ve. lying was not the way to go. i’m so angry at literally everyone in that scene for allowing arthur to walk away believing he was wrong. he was so full of conviction and he was about to do a really good thing - not good for him personally, but good for the world - and everyone he trusts lied to his face in order to maintain the status quo and not have to deal with anything ugly. i HATE it. i’m team arthur now. i’m in the arthur defense squad. all those dumb liars aren’t good enough to be his friends!!!!!!

like, even his dad’s words were sooo carefully chosen to avoid lying but also avoid telling the whole truth. even in that moment when arthur was laying it all bare and they could have made some sort of progress as character and as people. we had to go BACK TO THE STATUS QUO

Once Again Arthurs Heart Is Hardened To Magic i hate it thanks

honestly look uther telling arthur that he’s a trusted ally in the fight against magic should make him feel a lot more distressed than what we got. i mean i’m sure he’s glad his cover is safe but he should realize that if uther approves he’s doing something wrong

furthermore, uther hasn’t changed a bit. he says he came to thank merlin and that merlin is a loyal servant and trusted ally, but then threatens his life before he leaves. honestly we should have just let arthur stab him

i do appreciate them making a point of mentioning that merlin was tempted to let uther die and that it would have been better for him if uther HAD died and he only did what he did to protect arthur but like...there were ways to do that that didn’t involve lying i think. this is an optimistic show most of the time. it wouldn’t have messed with my suspension of disbelief if arthur had dropped the sword knowing the real whole truth! but no, The Status Quo

i don’t know if i will still love arthur so much in the coming episodes.................we’ll see. i’m kind of nervous because i don’t know how they’re ever going to top this. i think we peaked right here and it’ll never be this good for me again

[tumblunni]

OH FUCK I THINK I FINALLY CRACKED THE CODE OF WHY I ALWAYS LIKE THE VILLAINS BETTER

Like man it always makes me so confused cos i mean im a soft AF person and i always end up having sympathetic redemption headcanons for them so its not like i like VILLAINY ITSELF but what else do all these characters have in common?

Thats it. Thats it, ursula helped me crack it.

I just WANT THOSE TRAITS ON THE HEROES

I really want a nice confident sassy funny chubby trans auntie who promotes body positivity to our young hero and always gets to say the coolest lines and get the best moments and BE LOVED FOR WHO SHE IS

And like usually whenever you get anywhere close to seeing those "villain traits" on a hero they like.. Remove all the good parts. If you have a supportive hero aunt she's always boring and generically supportive instead, and has to look like the most stereotypical boring mess ans have a super small plot role and uuuugh thats IF SHES EVEN THERE i mean seriously aunties and grandmas are weirdly less represented as mentors than grandpas who are already REALLY HARD TO FIND and again OFTEN GENERIC AND UNFUN WHENEVER THEY GET TO APPEAR

And how damn often are we allowed to have a chubby gay aunt!! WHERE IS MY CHUBBY GAY AUNT!! ive met SO MANY chubby gay aunts in real life like 90% of all my psychologists have been either that or like.. The exact same but a straight lgbt ally instead. Sassy plus size aunties are THE BACKBONE OF OUR SOCIETY DAMMIT! I've had so much help thanks to sassy gay aunts!! And like even just looking at any damn crowd scene in a normal city centre youre gonna see so many chubby aunts and long nosed uncles and all those sorts of bullshit "ugly people" that mass media pretends are ugly and relegates to One Minor Role In The Entire Cast despite them being infinately more common than supermodels and NOT UGLY AT ALL GEEZ IT PISSES ME OFF SO MUCH

I cant believe im a fuckin disney villain fan cos of body positivity

Tfw u suck so bad at making hateable people that the fandom universally hugs all your villains and ignores your boring protagonists like fuckin TAKE THAT DIDNEY

God i wanna hug hades sooo bad he just needs a friend aaaaaa

And i mean its not just disney, every damn time ive obsessed over a villain its been because they have some trait thats supposed to be "bad" but its actually good and we dont get to see it on the heroes

Like my thing with science villains in particular is that when i first played ff7 i really liked the idea of an evil minion who's a bad sidekick not just because he's "dumb" or "bumbling" but because he's actually not interested in any of the evil stuff and he works against his own boss and is like.. Friendly to the heroes, i have no particular grudge against you and i wont stop you if im off duty and all. I liked the Turks for the same reason but in the origibal ff7 translation they were kind of stoic and serious and i didnt really become as much of a fan of them til i saw them being more goofy and comic relief in some optional sidequests and then their movie adaptation. But hojo was always being all "lol my boss's plan is so stupid amirite" and had that very memorable scene where he's just sunbathing and tells you everything you need to know to get to the next thing to ruin his boss's plan cos i mean fuck it who even cares im just here to soak up some sun while fully dressed in a turtleneck and labcoat. It sucked so much that he was such a reprehensible bastard with creepy sexual assault vibes and murder and child abuse and experimenting on people and basically just NOT A LOVEABLE VILLAIN but his CONCEPT held so much potential to be filled by a sympathetic character instead...

So yeah then cos of him i kept being obsessed with finding SOME CHARACTER SOMEWHERE that actually lived up tp that potential, and thats why i was instantly interested in charon from pokemon and totally on edge waiting for the slightest chance for him to become That Perfect Sass Gramps Of Legend. And then he was indeed sassy!! And had so little screenyime that there was potential for interpretation of him as potentially redeemable cos i mean the game never said he wasnt, the game barely said anything about him at all, lol. And he was so old and small and frail looking and i just wanted to protect him!! And then that one wifi event that actually hinted at synpatheticness!! Aaaa its a recipe for a Forever Fave~

And i guess maybe it all started with my grandma being awesome and me really missing her? Cos i had shitty abusive parents and she was my ONLY good family member who showed me what love was like. And she was also basically a supervillain. Like every damn supervillain trait except being evil! She was bombastic and confident and sassy and mischievious and loud and passionate about stuff and always had something funny to say and never gave up no matter how many times she failed. And she also used all that great power for the forces of good!

So yeh thats why i love sassy good guys and i hate that often even when a sassy villain gets redeemed they seem to lose all their edge and become more generic now theyre a good guy. Or they get totally sidelined with no screentime anymore, or they ONLY get to be comic relief and dont get the full and complex redemption they deserve. Or just a lot of bads!! Its never the simplest answer of just fuckin.. Keep the character the character. Thats kinda why i didnt feel too much for the maleficent movie even though the concept itself sounded like everything i ever wanted. The character in that movie is a very different person to origibal maleficent, she's more just a stoic tsundere mumsy figure than a hammy badass iconicness. Still a nice villain redemption but it felt like it would have been better as an original story instead of an attempted maleficent. Also i wish they handled it better with the whole "true love's kiss could be from your mum instead" thing cos i get sooooo grossed out whenever i see people shipping movie maleficent and aurora! Like yes sleeping beauty with lesbians would be great but not when one of them is old enough to be her mum and raised her like a mum and changed her goddamn diapers! Also why did they have to ruin the three good fairies just to make maleficent have the mum opportunity? Like just remove them from the story if you wanted maleficent to raise the kid instead. No need to rewrite them into incompetant assholes when they were everyone's fave part of the original! Dont sacrifice the rare and elusive Good Sassy Gay Aunts!! THEYRE LIKE THE ONLY ONES IN DIDNEY!!! (Incodentally merlin is the equivelant of this to hades as the fairies are to ursula)

Also also villains tend to have ACTUAL FLAWS in stories that have a more boring bland protagonist. I wanna see the story behind charon's neuroses and how he struggles with overcoming his temptation to be bad because of greed but ultimately manages to conquer his own negative side because power of friendship and such. Thats a great character arc that provides so much more than he does as a villain where they just wasted him entirely :(

SO BASICALLY IN SUMMARY

* villains are often more complex and well developed characters with flaws while the same wroter might make shitty heroes due to the illogical fear that nobody would root for them if they werent 100% perfect and successful at everything ever

* villains are also often made as negative stereotypes of minorities and other rarely seen traits, which means its easy to reach out to them and reclaim them as a more positive version when theres literally no other options for you to cling to

* the quite common accidental sympathy factor where a villain will seem to be hated more than they deserve for their actions, ir unjustly punished so much that they feel like an underdog, since the writer assumes you'll think theyre "more evil" for being a stereotype and if you dont agree that this thing is bad then it seems like they have way less sins than the story claims they do

* also sass. Sass is good.

But basically the whole root of it is that its stupid and cruel and doesnt goddamn work when you make villains bigoted stereotypes. It just makes me love them! The only person i hate when i see a stereotypical villain is the writer who thought that was a good idea, lol. Just imagine that meme of the samurai holding the cat but its me holding all disney villains!

Also even if a villain isnt outright intentionally meant to be "this minority is bad", it can still make me symoathetic to them if theyre still something thats rare amoung the hero side in the same series. Like charon being the "most unredeemable" villain despite being the most harmless and funny and his plan being so much less world destroying than cyrus, and also he's the only grandpa villain in like.. The whole of all. And he's drawn very much in that way thays supposed to be "ugly" i.e normal grandpa, vs that weird sort of younger than he looks grandpa that hero ones tend to be because blablabla beauty ewuals goodness anti body positivity whatever. Tho actually sinnoh was good with that, they had the best grandpa professor in my opinion cos he got to be sassy too! Rowan always reminds me of auron from ff10. Sinnoh was a good game where i liked a lot of both the heroes and villains even if i still had more villain faves cos i mean pokemon is always biased towards that for me since every game has a voiceless perosnalityless main character and often theyre the one doing most of the heroing with the supporting hero characters having surprisingly little proper screen time. Thats a big part of why i loved hau gladion and lillie in sun and moon! They felt more like a real friend group than any other ones before.

ANYWAY now im just going offtopic into more "i love lots of stuff about every pokemon game" so ill stop typing now

But just basically VILLAINS ARE GOOD COS THEYRE GOOD CHARACTERS and if those stories gavethe same character a good guy role then id still love them just as much, if not more. I dont specifically like villainy, its just that my definition of a good character is often considered a bad character by lazy writers, apparantly?

Also WHERE IS MY SUPPORTIVE GOOD GRAMPS CHARON GAME AND GAY AUNTIE URSULA GIVES YOU FASHION TIPS SMARTPHONE MMO

[thegreymoon]

Sorry, You didn't really say or do anything to make me think that you are Asian. I thought that I read sth in your lj where u said that you were and just run with it. It was a long time ago and I must have misread. Also, you don't really post a lot political stuff, it is more like I notice it more because when I visit your page I skip all Merlin related stuff and am interested in the rest so again my fault. As for my ise of imaginary- yeah, it was passive agressive, altough not intentionally so

… my bad. I rarely engage in political conversations online because it never ends well, especially when my views clash with 90% of tumblr users so I am used to combative tone and it was unnecessary.. As for SJW I am not sure if that is dissmissive term as it discribes the “movement” well? I am not native speaker and am aware that it can be used as derogative term, but was also convinced that it is used by people on the left if political spectrum. I asked you why you are mainy interesetd in USA because I was working under the assumption that u are Asian it seemed to me weird that a person coming from China/Japan etc would be championing social justice in USA when it not that big of a problem(or at all IMO) whie ignoring very real problems in their own country. But since you are not Asian and you post political stuff rarely you are right it is a silly discussion. The fault is completely on my side. I am allergic to these kind of stuff and you are one of my favourite writers so I exaggerated. Once again sorry.

As for the rest of your response: I also come from relatively poor country that was screwed over by both Britain and USA and many other countries, and I don’t agree with many of their policies (or most) but I don’t hate them and believe that as much as people like to say they start wars for the oil etc it is not really true. There are many political and global players and everyone single country is motivated by greed it is only that not every country can exercise their power.  

Relatively they are not the worst, it is just that since USA tries to paint themselves as heroes they are held to different, much higher standards than other countries. To sum it up, I am not defending their foreign policies, they have done a lot of wrong and are shortseighted but I still think that are better than other superpowers that will soon take over like China or maybe India. Also, I don;t understand why would you include global warming in your answer?why do you believe it is their fault

I am trying to leave as “green” as I can, I am a vegetarian and I believe we should do everything to preserve environment, but I wouldnt want my country to sign any deals concerning CO2 emission as long as other countries do not do the same. Otherwise, they would just cripple their economy and not help the world? As for Trump(if you are still interested) I find him the epitome of self-important, conceited stereotypical american but still so much better than alternative and despite distaste. would still vote for him. Because he at least apppears to be anti globalist and has a much higher moral ground than Hillary. what are his SPECIFIC actions that you find so abhorrent? Anyway, what I alluded to in my message was not politics of USA but the social justcie issues, like support BLM or me to movement(I am not sure if you posted enything regarding that, so srry if I presume wrongly) which I find are absolutely not based on facts and despite that people still perpetuate that, and if u don’t agree you are racist and sexist. No arguments whatsoever. It is also silly to me when I see the posts about the West being this cesspool of sexism while honour killings or FGM is nearly a non issue on social media or racism when considering the West is still the least racist place in the world when you compare it to China/India/SA or any other place. So, I find the social media effort to be misdirected and controlled by emotions. Even the indigineous people issued you mentioned. Americans get so much shit for their history, while pretty much every single country that exist was created by conquering or displacement of the previous population(u just have to go far enough down the history). So, yeah wht happend to Indigenous people and dissappearance of their whole civilization is a great tragedy but not the first and unfortunately not the last in human history. Why are we hearing about it but not about Anuit people or Persian or Byzantians? it is so imbalanced. Ok, anyway, sorry for the rant it shouldn’t be directed at you and tumblr is definitely not the place for it. Sorry if I offended to you. As I said I love your writing, “DC” is my all time favourite fic, and because I creepely once read through all of your lj(including asks and responses) I(like an internet creep and stalker)liked you and thought you seemed smart, well balanced and knowledgeable so I guess I felt entitled to to make the ask. Wish you all the best in life. 

No worries, I’m sorry I came off so aggressive in my answer. I did actually live and work in China for a while during my LJ days and it’s entirely possible I may have tagged myself as being there on my fandom profiles at the time. It was a happy period for me and I talked about it a lot to anyone who had the patience to listen, so it’s very plausible that you have read something about it on my LJ! I’m very sorry if it was misleading, but I was only ever an expat there!

I used to be a lot more open about my real name and real-life dealings in fandom communities, but that almost backfired spectacularly, so I locked down a lot of stuff because it could do me quite a bit of damage. 

OK, I concede your point that if you remove the Merlin stuff, a lot of what is left on my Tumblr is going to be either me reblogging cats or raging about social injustices (oops) 😅

I’d just like to make it clear that I absolutely do not hate either the USA, the UK or any other country in the world. Like I said, people are people, and disgusting policies are disgusting policies and every single country is guilty of them. It’s just that some have a bigger impact and are more visible. My own country is a source of so much shame and anger for me, it far outweighs anything the UK and the USA could have ever done because it’s personal, but our nonsense is just not something that I come across when casually scrolling through Tumblr, so I don’t reblog it. It’s possible to love a nation and its people and still be critical of the evil they have done. 

Also, let me just clarify that I’m bothered by all injustices and human rights violations everywhere, but usually there isn’t a post about them when I’m scrolling at 2 am at night that I can reblog. The USA is just… low hanging fruit, and let’s face it, from where I stand, hating on their president, the white supremacists, the Nazis, fundamental Christians, racists and the Republicans in general after what they have turned into is not hating on the USA, but rather cheering on the sane part of the country to get rid of this toxic waste ASAP. The same goes for Brexiteers in the UK and I am so, so sad for all the people that are going to suffer because of it. 

Of course, I’m aware that China and Japan have issues and human rights violations that are mind-boggling, but again, they just don’t appear on my dash very often, or at least not in English or from a source I can easily fact-check. The Japanese and Chinese stuff I follow is mostly art, nature and pictures of pretty clothes. My knowledge of either of these countries is very superficial compared to Western countries, which impact me directly, so it really isn’t my place to appoint myself as a champion of human rights in the Far East when my own country and continent are a growing dumpster fire that cannot be contained.  

On the subject of global warming, I’m not blaming the USA (entirely, because they, of course, played their part, but so did the rest of humanity). I’m enraged by their governing body’s rhetoric as of late, the denial of climate change, every single action that Trump took since taking office (such as withdrawing from the Paris climate agreement), him making ignorant, snide remarks in the middle of the polar vortex just days ago while people were suffering, deliberately sabotaging scientists and spreading dangerous, false information when each and every single country should be all-hands-on-deck if we want to avert a disaster of global proportions (especially with all the signs pointing to us being too late already). Nobody is suggesting that the USA should unilaterally reduce carbon emissions, all countries in the world must do it and develop the technology to make it feasible to convert to clean energy. And yes, the USA, China and other giants have to lead the way because they are the ones with the power! My poor, tiny country is not the one that can impact anything, so yes, the USA is absolutely more responsible to lead the way forward, but instead of at least moving in the right direction, Trump is deliberately lying and sabotaging all effort because he likes the money he gets from Big Oil companies, and he’s giving a platform to religious nutcases for votes, who think that there won’t be a global disaster of epic proportions in the near future because God promised Noah he would never again flood the entire Earth in the Old Testament. It’s not even the outright evil that is bothering me the most right now, but the mind-numbing stupidity. 

I have nothing but loathing for both of the Clintons. They have caused so much destruction in my country and I do not want good things for either of them, ever. I will never pretend that Hillary Clinton is anything even resembling a good person because you do not reach that level of power by having a conscience, but at the very least, she is not a rapist and paedophile that the general public knows of (which is more than we can say for her husband, btw). Trump has no moral high ground whatsoever, IMO. He has done everything imaginable, from scamming charities (this was proven in court) to raping minors (see Epstein). He has no redeemable human characteristics and is not even intelligent enough to pretend that he does, which is at least one thing that Hillary has going for her. I’m not going to sit here and list all the reasons why Trump is abhorrent because a) it cannot fit in a Tumblr post b) I would be sitting here for years. 

I will also not engage in discussion about whether or not BLM is a valid movement, ever. I don’t understand what you mean when you say it isn’t based on ‘facts’. Which, facts are in doubt, exactly? It’s based on multigenerational, still ongoing trauma and persecution of an entire race of people! I’m neither black nor an American, but I believe African-American people when they talk about the terror they experience on a daily basis in their own country. I have eyes and I have ears, I know plenty of white people and have insight into how they think because I too am white and have been raised with similar bullshit. I have lived in Africa for years and seen things with my own eyes. I will never not take the side of black people when they protest racism anywhere and I will never not believe them when they talk about police brutality, race-based violence and systemic racism in countries built on slavery. 

Of course, I’m not saying racism doesn’t exist in other places and in other forms, but talking about one does not negate the other. 

Also, I don’t understand the point you’re trying to make about the West not being sexist because other places have it worse? I’m sure I misunderstood this, so forgive me if that is the case. FGM is terrible, yes, but that in no way invalidates other types of gender violence that still ruins the lives of countless women. Just because the women in, say, Saudi Arabia have it worse, that doesn’t mean that the women here or in the USA should not talk about issues that directly affect them (and, btw, I have absolutely been outraged about Saudi Arabia and FGM and shared posts about both). All are bad! This is not a competition. 

On the topic of you saying that America gets so much shit for its history, which you think is unjust, I have to mention that European settlers killed up to 95% of Native Americans in some areas in relatively recent history. Just days ago, I was reading an article about how they killed so many people, it actually changed the global climate! This is genocide on such a massive scale, my brain can’t even comprehend it, and yet here we are today, with Columbus Day and Thanksgiving as holidays while the surviving Native Americans suffer all kinds of indignity and discrimination, so no, I don’t think we are talking about it enough and I feel that America deserves all the shit it gets for its history. IMO, it is not getting enough shit! The fact that there are other issues out there that need to be talked about too and are being silenced does not in any way take away from any of this. 

Anyway, let’s not argue about which country is The Worst™ and which human rights issues are more worthwhile than others because that is pointless. We already agree that all governments are corrupt, that evil happened and is still happening all over the world and that all human rights issues are important. I firmly believe that if they were to be evaluated by a psychiatrist, 99% of all high-ranking politicians would be diagnosed with serious clusters of antisocial personality disorders. Most of them would do anything and the only thing stopping them is whether or not they can get away with it. The remaining 1% cannot really do much and keep both their conscience and political power intact. 

In any case, the last thing I want in life is to get into Tumblr discourse with LJ people, so how about we just put this behind us? Let’s agree to disagree on who is worse, Trump or Hillary, because that is a pointless disagreement, especially since neither of us is an American and this is getting out of hand. I feel like we are actually miscommunicating and talking about different things. We seem to be arguing different points, so all of it is coming off worse for both of us than it really should be. Also, I wish you hadn’t sent me this ask anonymously, because I now have no way of responding to you except publically, and Tumblr is seriously not a good place for this. 

On a happier note, I’m very glad that you enjoyed DC! I’m very sorry for the extremely long hiatus! Unfortunately, I’ve been going through things that stopped me from writing for a long time. I hope that one day I can still come back and finish that story, in spite of everything! Have a good day/night! :)

*hugs*

[vampirequeenoffan]

yes hello im feeling your trollhunters opinion!! do u also feel like Merlin is super shady? I don't think he did a single thing since he showed up that can be considered 'good', he doesn't seem to care about anyone but himself, and after what he did to get Jim to turn into a troll (cutting him off from his entire support network, playing on his insecurities) I thought he'd turn out to be the Ultimate Villain of the show right up until the end, when he wasn't.

HOOOBOY do I ever have FEELINGS about this (which will once again be under the cut because SCREAMING)

First off, holy fuck, THANK you. Your message means a lot to me (as do the other nice messages and comments I got on my post! It feels great to know I’m not the only one who felt like there was something wrong with this ending).

Second.

Yeah, what in the fuck is up with Merlin? I liked him for a good thirty seconds after he was introduced– I’m a bit of a sucker for the ‘ancient and powerful being of legend is actually Not At All What Anyone Thought trope’ tbh. But the novelty quickly wore off and you’re absolutely right– I totally thought he was going to be the show’s Ultimate Villain. I usually love asshole characters, so the fact that Merlin is so much of an asshole that I hated him is… impressive, in a weird way. And the list of characters I’m crazy about contains several serial killers, so the bar is real low.

Let’s break this down.

Merlin, upon reentering the picture, does the following:

–Gets passive-aggressively mad at the Trollhunters for not getting him his staff

Which, y’know, could’ve been avoided if he’d just asked to have the staff in the same room with him when he’d been buried. He also had no reason to be mad, considering his plan was to release Morgana all along, and had the Trollhunters actually taken back the staff they then would’ve had to fight their way into Trollmarket in order to free Morgana, which… would have been difficult. That, or they’d have had to turn the staff over to Gunmar anyway, so again, no reason for Merlin to be mad.

Personally I totally agree that they should’ve left Morgana in there, or at least had some semi-automatic weapons ready when they did release her (because if the USA is going to have shitty gun control laws we might as well use them to destroy evil witches, amiright?), but this is about Merlin’s reaction, not mine.

Also, if this was his plan all along, he could’ve left instructions about that. So that, y’know, Drall didn’t die trying to stop Gunmar from taking the staff. You know. That little detail.

–Repairs Jim’s amulet

On the surface this is good, except that, again, he wouldn’t have had to do this if he’d written the directions to his tomb on anything else. He could’ve even had the instructions in like, the spirit room that the dead trollhunters live in, if he was really that determined to make sure it was trollhunter-specific. 

–Threatens to eat Toby

????????¿¿¿¿¿¿¿???????

What even happened here. What. Don’t get me wrong, I love it, it really added to the ‘what the fuck even is going on with him’ vibe that Merlin has, but why? Did he just… hang out with trolls too much? But only the evil trolls did that. What even was happening here. And why Toby? Was it process of elimination because he though Claire was hot (which, uh, creepy) and he needed Jim, or was this a… fat joke? I honestly have no idea.

–Gives them a laundry list of complicated as fuck items to collect

Merlin is an asshole who should’ve gotten his groceries himself. Nuff said. Oh wait, not enough said, because one of those things was literally lightning in a goddamn bottle, which they needed the help of actual goddamn aliens to get, so Merlin, with no knowledge of modern technology, really should have known he needed to at least get that one by himself.

What a guy.

–Destroys Jim’s vespa

Okay, this probably seems petty. ‘Merlin literally kickstarted the apocalypse, why do you care about the vespa?’ Well, because it wasn’t just any piece of machinery. Jim had been wanting a vespa for a very, very long time– for him, it was a dream, then a symbol of normalcy, and then it became even more than that when he finally got one– by building it with Blinky. It was a project he undertook alongside his father figure, likely took weeks of work, and was a physical reminder of how much Blinky cared about him.

Merlin destroys it and uses it to make armor.

Now, there’s some symbolism here. Merlin is destroying the vespa– symbol of Jim’s old life– and using it to forge armor– transforming his old life into something that protects his friends. It’s not unlike what his amulet has done to him, or what Merlin later tries to do by making Jim into a troll. Which, yeah, I’ve covered being a shitty tactical decision and I’m going to go over even more reasons why it’s terrible in a minute.

Point is, dick move. He could’ve used literally any other kind of metal, so the only upside here is symbolism and, let’s be real, it’s a metaphor is not a good reason to do dumb shit.

–Champions releasing Morgana

I was really happy that everyone yelled at him about this one. I was less happy that that was all that happened. Merlin did, clearly, just want his magic back. If he didn’t, he would have just left Morgana in her goddamn crystal like a sensible person, or at the very least agreed to help take out Gunmar before handling Morgana. It’s just common sense to divide and conquer– yes writing a paper is very hard, but it’s a lot easier to do that when your house isn’t on fire. Dealing with problems separately makes them all a lot less taxing, or in this case, a lot less deadly! There are so many people that would still be alive if Merlin, after being asleep for hundreds of years, had just been able to wait a few more goddamn weeks to have his fingersparkles back.

–Emotionally manipulates Jim into becoming a troll

This fucker. This assclown. You’re absolutely right– he cuts him off from everyone he knows and refuses to let him go rescue his mom, does that shitty parent thing where you guilt someone by saying “It’s your choice whether or not to do the right thing…” and spews some shit about destiny and just generally uses his title of Old Guy Who Knows Stuff to tell Jim that he Has To Do This, but it’s Totally Your Choice.

I thought, when Jim’s mom rescued herself (go Barb go!!!) and came running up to the bathroom door, that he would stop. Because that was the whole reason Jim was going to go through with the transformation– it was the only way Merlin would let him go save his mom. The fact that he just kinda… ignored the fact that they were out there yelling for him? Yeah, that was dumb. Even if he wanted to go through with it, he should have talked to his friends and family first. That was, uh, the whole lesson he learned from going into the Darklands alone. We’ve been down this road, Jim, it’s depressing.

And then Merlin’s just… useless. He can’t beat Morgana, his tactics suck ass, and the only thing he does from that point on is try to get other people to die for him– looking at you, Aargh. I’m so glad you’re still alive.

So, to reiterate, Merlin shows up, fucks shit up, and then doesn’t fix any of the fucked up shit. On top of that, he’s an asshole the entire time– the “real battle of Killahead” line was just the tip of the douchebag iceberg (though ‘all you folks who died during this battle didn’t matter’ was a hell of a way to kick that off, I agree). But… why?

You’re right, we don’t know why he and Morgana started this pissing contest. We don’t even know why he took her on as an apprentice in the first place, or what connection the two of them had to trolls at all– presumably a strong one, considering how much they both tried to fuck with the future of the species. Before we met Merlin, none of these things had to be defined– Morgana and Merlin were vague enough as figures that we could imagine any number of things that had led to the current state of being. I, personally, imagined Merlin as being more invested in humans than trolls, which made sense to me because he was on the side of the trolls that didn’t hurt humans and his amulet placed a huge amount of value on Jim’s humanity. But then it’s revealed that Merlin actually doesn’t give a shit about humans at all, as he apparently eats them, doesn’t mind putting the entire town of Arcadia in danger, and tells Jim that his humanity doesn’t matter and he’s better off being a troll.

Same for Morgana. I thought her whole deal was that she wanted trolls to be the dominant species, but then she says Gunmar is disposable and doesn’t seem to give a shit about his conquest of the surface? If she didn’t actually care about trolls conquering humans, why in the hell did she want to bring about the eternal night?

So, again, what was happening and why were they so invested in the future of trollkind? If it wasn’t, like I thought, about whether humanity or trolls should be dominant, what possible reason could they have for interfering? Presumably at one point they got along, because Morgana was Merlin’s apprentice, but the only reason we get for her hating him is that he took her hand to make the amulet. . . except, wait, he did that after she started trying to bring about the eternal night. Forget why she cared about that, if he didn’t care about humans then why did he?

TLDR, Merlin’s an asshole, his decisions make no sense, and when you poke at things he creates plotholes in the entire series that weren’t there prior to his introduction. Also he’s the worst.

[epic-sorcerer]

For context, I’m a gnc bi girl.

I feel like a show such as Merlin really scratches an itch for me. The main character is openly gnc, cries when he needs to, and generally doesn’t care about following the social rules of Camelot. He has a very “fuck you u do what I want” additute, along with an inner conflict of the ballance between perosnal freedom and self protection. Something many queer people struggle with.

Also, one of the co writers is a gay man himslef, and said in some interviews the show was not only about the love story between two men, but aboht seuxality at its core. This show was literally made to appeal to a queer audiaence.

I mean, look. Merlin is gnc, but not stariotypically. He’s not overly fem or glittery, and it’s hardly ever eveb aknolaged. Aside from a few jokes. Merlin simply is Merlin. That’s it. The show just allows him to be this natural mix of androgany that makes sense for his character.

It feels natural too bc Merlin has aspects of himslef that is both masculine and feminine. On one hand, he is the protector. Of Arthur, of Camelot, and for all he cares for. He accepts this role with grace and fully intends to be a self sacrifice if he thinks it’s necessary. But he’s also feminine. His job is to serve Arthur, nurture him, listen to him, etc. he also takes an almost submissive role when gwen flirts with him(s1). And when he needed to get a dress for freya, he didn’t act all dumb and shit like he didn’t know hwta to do. He understood the assignment and got her a dress that he knew would be her size and would look nice. This is said more in dept in this amazing psot by @tyalangand

Also, the 3 main-est characters all follow a different but distinctly relatable path for a queer audience. Arthur is hyper masculine because he needs to be. He has no other choise but to conform in every way for camelots sake. He sacrifices personal freedom and mental health for tradition and stability. Morgana ultimately rebels in every aspect. She becomes wild and powerful and escapes from camelots expectations. She fights and screams and looks very sexy. She is the one to ruin the kingdom that tried to take away her freedom. Merlin is…hard to pin down. On one hand, he seams to act as a sort of middle ground between the two, but I feel like that’s an understatement of the intensity of his character. Yes, he does fail in breaking camelots status quo(same as Arthur), and he also shares a similar ideal as morgana for magic to be unstigmatized. But it jsut feels so much more complicated than taht.

Also to bring this back to why it’s relatable: the “status quo” and it’s oppressive values is a constant plague on every queer persons story. Witch is why magic being a metaphor for queerness is such a popular narrative in the fandom. And as a warlock, Merlin is literally “born this way” if you catch my drift. Also it’s hard not to feel like you have a destrny or general obligation to be the Activist as a queer person. It feels like we are forced into a role of protecting and representing our whole people simply by choosing a curtain lable that resonates with us. Not jsut by being queer, but by LABLIBG ourselves as such.

Merlin also faces a large conflict about coming out and the dangers taht come from it. Even in the most “civilized” and “modern” countries, some queers still get attacked in the streets, neglected by medical professionals, etc, leading to queer death. Merlin also has that conflict of WHO to come out to and when. The only person he ever really comes out to anyway is Arthur and soem side characters that are forgotten about after an episode or two.

I think is is why ppl relate so hard to Merlin, and just as much as they relate to him, they envy morgana, and sympathize with Arthur.

Even though morgana is evil, there is something cathartic and sort of Suductive of watching her reject normality and embrace the opposite. I say suduction not only bc she’s hot (especially for wlw veiwers) but also in a sense that it scratches taht ITCH. arnt you tired of acting normal? Dotn you want to stick it to your abusers? Stick it to the very society that broke you sense you were small? Dotn you just want to go ape shit?

Merlin represents our reality, morgana our revenge fantasy, and Arthur what we fear.

Arthur is the personification of everything a queer person could fear. Soul crushing normality.

He fulfills every gender role and stariotype as closely as possible. He only sees himslef as an emotionless vessel for comelots future, and not as a living, breathing soul. Arthur never deals with or understands his emotions. He is repressed as much as oppressed. And it shows. He is hell to be around sometimes. He is exhausted constantly. He has the most fragile ego in the show. He constantly offers up his life as if he is nothing, to the point of it mgiht even being suicidal ideation. And even when he takes a promising step in the right direction, he always takes two steps back. Arthur is what we fear most because he is trapped. He cannot do a damn thing to diverge form the norm and he knows it. WE know it. Arthur has everything planned out for him. Be a strong knight, become a king with an iron fist, marry a noble woman and have many children. Notice how closely that follows a heteronormative set of values?

Also, before I forget, the subtext. Oh the subtext. Idk if I could get into it much into this bc this is already so long, but just scroll through the merthur tag and you’ll find everything you need to know. Merlin and Arthur get the most screen time in the show, especially together. They look into each other’s eyes for far too long, then they glance at each other’s lips. Still. Silence. The viewer believes they are about to kiss. But they don’t. They never do. Because Arthur is stuck. And Merlin is scared. And the status quo will stay for 1,500 long years.

LGBTQ+/QUEER MERLIN FANS, PLEASE HELP ME

SO my lovely cishet friend is watching merlin for the first time. i've tried to explain to her why the show resonates with me as a queer person despite the lack of rep etc. but i'm not great at explaining things. i know there are a lot of eloquent people in this fandom who could explain things better than me so i'd love it if you could help me out.

please reply to this post explaining why merlin resonates with you as a queer/lgbtq+ person. feel free to write a sentence, or five paragraphs or anything in between, i'd just love to know how you feel and be able to share our experiences with my mate so she can understand too!

[real-life-sucks-ass]

U, W, X and Y ?!

U - Three favorite characters from three different fandoms, and why they’re your favorites.

Emerson Kent (Whitechapel), because he’s a cute bullied puppy, eager to please, loyal and hard-working, because he’s hopelessly in love with his oblivious boss and I have a soft spot for pining characters and one-sided love stories. Also, he may be sweet at first glance, but he’s bitter, angry, envious, jealous and there is something very dark and creepy inside of him, and well, I love angst and drama and angry silent characters. So yeah, I love him and his beautiful eyes and pretty curly hair.

Rust Cohle (True Detective), because he’s a broken man who has nothing left to lose and burns his life away trying to do his job and fight evil in our world. And yeah, you’re starting to get it, I really, really love tragic and damaged characters. I love his sharp features, his negative way of thinking (he actually makes me want to go read Nietzsche and all kinds of philosophy books), his tragic past, the way he gets old in those ten years (I love the ponytail and the mustache and I don’t get why in fanfics they don’t stay ;_;), his relationship with Marty, and how soft and sad his eyes get when he talks about his daughter. Also he is SUCH A BADASS. *__*

Merlin (BBC Merlin), because I fell in love with him the first time I saw him smile. He’s so cute and adorable and I love his sharp cheekbones and big ears. But that’s not all of course, the acting is perfect and I admire how it feels real when he cries, he doesn’t cry prettily, it’s messy and his whole face contracts and he gets red and his nose runs, etc. Also, he’s everything I like in a character: he’s hiding a secret and his true self to the most important person to him (did I mention I absolutely LOVE characters hiding a huge and dangerous secret? because I do), he’s dorky, and a loving son, so loyal and kind hearted and brave. He’s ready to do everything it takes to save Arthur, even killing innocent people and letting druids and sorcerers live in fear, and I love how he brings Arthur’s doom by trying too hard to protect and save him. Yup, I do love tragic and dark characters, and Merlin puts love above everything else, and because of that he loses everything. Okay I’m going to go cry in a corner now.

W - A trope which you are virtually certain to hate in any fandom.

Well not so long ago I would have said “fake/pretend relationship”, but now I’m thinking I might enjoy it in the Crazy ex-girlfriend fandom… So, I’m gonna say Mpreg. And A/B/O. Yup, not my jam at all.

X - A trope which you are almost certain to love in any fandom.

I have a thing for characters having to share a bed… :3

Y - What are your secondhand fandoms (i.e., fandoms you aren’t in personally but are tangentially familiar with because your friends/people on your dash are in them)?

Mh tbh I don’t really pay attention to fandoms I’m not into, even when it pops up on my dash sometimes. But I know some stuff about Black Sails because @dupond-and-dupont tried so hard to drag me into it with her XD

[thegeminisage]

merlin thots about the s5 opening episodes.......

here’s your courtesy cut

one of my favorite things about s5 so far is how very nicely arthur and merlin have both 1. grown up and 2. grown into each other...they still give each other shit 24/7 but it’s a lot more companionable and comfortable now than it ever has been. furthermore, both of them exhibit the use of MULTIPLE braincells even at the SAME TIME. they work very well together as a team even in the heat of battle (we did see shades of this near the end of s4), despite merlin being kind of useless at physical combat when he couldn’t rely on his magic for a boost. they can have entire conversations without a word and they’re just INCREDIBLY synchronized. the whole #vibe has really gotten a level up

timeline-wise, it’s been roughly a decade since season 1. in s1 they said the purge began 20 years ago (upon arthur’s birth), and shortly after, he had a coming of age ceremony - 21′s an important number, so in season 1 arthur began as being 20 and turned 21 before the end. season 2 = 22. gap year for s2-s3 = 23. season 3 = 24. s3-s4 gap year = 25. season 4 = 26. 3 gap years betweeen s4-s5 = 27, 28, 29. season 5 = 30. i don’t know how long it was in real life between seasons 4 and 5 (definitely not three years), but i really do feel like they’ve both aged SO much and they absolutely act like people who have known each other for a decade.

gwen as queen is AMAZINGNGLSDKJGHDSLFG she’s SO PRETTY i love her SO MUCH. love that she has her own serving girl now! this is what she deserves

the round table is good too altho it looks a bit too big for that room. it’s amazing though like...FUCK uther pendragon arthur has come SO FAR

merlin being nice to the new girl is very charming. makes him seem older and w-w-WISER (love that word) by comparison

also love that merlin gets to ride a horse while some of the footsoldiers walk. that’s #status. that’s *** ******

pretty sure i had a stroke during merlin’s vision of arthur’s death. the whole thing was done SO well - they go from the battlefield and arthur’s incredibly dirty face as he very realistically looks like he’s falling down and dying and then cut to a very alive and present arthur asking what’s wrong. you can really FEEL the whiplash, and also the dread settles in nice and deep, at least it does if you’re me and you’ve read spoilers, like, “only you can keep arthur safe” BUT I KNOW HE DOESN’T I KNOW HE CAN’T I KNOW HE FAILS and merlin might as well know it too because he looks ready to CRY and thru the rest of this 2-parter opening he acts like he thinks arthur may drop dead at any moment

i feel like i read somewhere once that actors don’t like to eat during a scene unless absolutely necessary because when you do 30 takes of something you get very full very quickly and some even go so far as to have a spit bucket just out of sight so that they can just get rid of it without having to eat any more. which makes it absolutely bananas to me that so often in merlin the characters are not only eating but eating very quickly as though they really have been roughing it in the wilderness all day & are absolutely famished...they don’t have to show them eating so often BUT THEY DO

arthur getting merlin into a tight spot by insisting he perform, planning on laughing at his failure? funny. merlin ACTUALLY USING MAGIC TO TEACH HIMSELF TO JUGGLE so that he could watch arthur’s jaw hit the floor? PRICELESS. i wonder how long it took him to do that, he definitely wasn’t using a body double

merlin is acting so bleak and dire in these episodes that even mr no-empathy himself asks him whats wrong, multiple times. they’re doing a VERY good job at really driving home the fact that arthur’s time is running short and there’s nothing anyone can do about it. merlin’s so sick with dread he’s making ME sick with dread. arthur’s here and being his normal dumbass self but the distance between them feels HUGE during the moments merlin is thinking about arthur’s impending doom

arthur all “i cant believe u can juggle i didnt even know you could catch” and then throwing the boots at merlin only for merlin to NOT CATCH THEM and arthur goes “see explain that” and merlin goes “wish i could” and i D I E 

because he’s KNOWN HIM FOR A DECADE and he still can’t explain the magic and at this point it must feel like to him that he never, ever will UUUUUGH it’s funny how they can feel so close to each other one second and like THIS the next i am DYING

the little conversation they have when they make camp the next night is the same. the sad music plays, merlin keeps looking at arthur like it might be the last time he sees him, and arthur keeps insisting on asking merlin what’s wrong and trying to make him feel better...they’re really for real friends!!! they’re so serious and grown up!!!!!

ive lost count of how many times either merlin or arthur has been nearly dead and had to get hauled around by the other one

also of how many times merlin used his magic in a way that should have been obvious to bystanders and wasn’t

“if morgana doesnt kill you i will" “threatening a king is treason merlin” “what about threatening an ASS” listen. look me in the eyes. this is TOP TIER banter

remember how in the early seasons they’d bend over backwards to leave plausible deniability when expressing affection? like “we’d be good friends if you weren’t a prince” or “you’re not wise or anything but yeah you’re wise” or whatever dumb toxic masculinity bullshit...those days are OVER with. merlin speaks DIRECTLY from the heart. “i’m worried about you” and “i swear i’ll protect you or die at your side” he is not fucking around even a little bit. this fool is in love

they were ALMOST cuddling when they slept together under that overhang

the two of them trapped in that net was PRICELESS. in the early seasons i got a little tired of the frequent slapstick/juvenile humor and wished the series was a bit more serious but now that they’re here i cling to every shred of levity with my whole heart

i was SO relieved to realize gwen wasn’t actually planning on killing that poor girl - i kept saying the entire time it was very out of character for her, no way could she be that cruel

arthur: “you wanna kill me fine but my last request is for you not to kill merlin” merlin: “you wanna kill arthur fine but you’re gonna have to go through me” arthur: “for fucks sake”

merlin: i never do as i’m told! that’s *** ******

i dont care if mordred DID save their lives i NEVER wanted to see him less i am so full of dread

i can’t BELIEVE morgana also has a pet dragon. she and merlin could have been the BEST foils and i’m STAYING mad about it. she was actually so good in this episode - way less full of evil smirks - that i briefly rejoined the morgana defense squad and got REAL pissed when mordred eventually shanked her, ESPECIALLY after she was so happy she was nearly crying to see him again. WHAT IS IT WITH THAT KID AND STABBING PEOPLE KNOCK IT OFF

the snowy environments in this episode were soooo good. the scenery was just...top fucking tier and it’s nice to see them somewhere other than the same old places. also like NO allo but arthur looks really nice just wandering around through a bunch of fucking snowbanks with dirt all over his face

arthur and merlin’s little ploy to steal that dagger by arthur faking a collapse was SO GOOD. they’re SO IN SYNC. i was THRILLED. better still: he winked when he was done. he used like FIVE WHOLE BRAIN CELLS AT ONCE and he was ALMOST as proud of himself as i am proud of him. what a guy, that arthur pendragon

their escape was really good too. the nonverbal communication? top tier! they just give each other little looks and then proceed to wreck the whole scene. doubly funny when the slaver is like WHO SPILLED THAT STUFF and arthur just kind of jerks his head over at merlin. snitches get stitches, YOUR HIGHNESS

i barely felt one whole emotion for sefa or her dad but him dying was like. sad. this show is sad. why the fuck am i watching it. i hate character death. they were hugging

arthur seemed like he was having just the time of his LIFE sneaking into that big ol tower of doom. dude was all cute little quips and smiles. popped his head outta that lil minecart like a kid at christmas

i love also that you give percival nothing but a single sword and in short order he goes about liberating all the slaves, killing all the slavers, and then reappropriating their swords to a better cause. he’s a one-man army. i was SO impressed. and he really looked like he was having fun too

merlin seeing that lil baby dragon again was SO fucked up and sad. why can’t it TALK :(((

also lmao “merlin you cant be that stupid” “no i am if you dont believe me watch” and merlin bolts and arthur sighs with SO much longsuffering and says “im going after him”

the light in morgana’s eyes when she talks about wanting to have arthur’s head and then her stabbing him over and over without actually killing him...she’s batshit insane. rip

i do like that arthur sort of TRIED to talk her around...it’s the first time he’s really gotten to speak with her since the end of season 3 when he found out who she was

on a final note, though, i am less than thrilled with the knighting of mordred...how is it arthur can KNOW who he is, that he’s a druid, and can do magic, and LET HIM INTO THE KNIGHTS, and still have sorcery be outlawed in camelot?? it doesnt make any SENSE